Over the next three decades trillions of dollars in wealth is going to change hands from one generation to the next as the world’s wealthiest individuals continues to age and approach retirement age. About 30% of the wealth that is set to change hands consists of liquid assets which will provide beneficiaries in the next generation with more flexibility on spending. A large chunk of the wealth that will be transferred includes family owned businesses that heirs will have the option of taking over. There will be many heirs that might not want to take on the responsibilities of managing a family business and might choose instead to sell the company. Proper estate planning is essential for individuals that want to preserve family wealth for future generations of offspring.
See Ansuya Harjani, Coming soon: The biggest wealth transfer in history, CNBC, January 13, 2015.
Special thanks to Jim Hillhouse for bringing this article to my attention.
