Inside the ‘Trust Reveal,’ Where the Superrich Pass on Generational Wealth

[Special thanks to Joel C. Dobris (Professor of Law, UC Davis School of Law) for bringing this article to my attention.]

Surprise! You have a $100 million trust fund. 

That is the message at “trust reveal” meetings hosted by wealthy families and advisers around the country. These days, business is booming. 

Baby boomers, who accumulated unprecedented wealth during decades of economic expansion and stock-market gains, are now passing this money down. More than $100 trillion will move from older generations to offspring and charities through 2048, according to Cerulli Associates. Around $62 trillion will stem from high-net-worth individuals, who make up around 2% of all households.

The task of transferring this wealth, and communicating it with children, can be tricky. That is why delivering the good news was long left to trustees or lawyers, or in envelopes with details of how to access cash. 

While luxe vacations and private schooling give children clues that they are wealthy, many families don’t share their true net worths, fearful of spoiling them or dimming their motivation to earn. “Hugely wealthy parents should leave their children enough so they can do anything but not enough that they can do nothing,” Berkshire Hathaway’s Warren Buffett wrote in a letter to shareholders. 

Bankers, estate lawyers and money managers for the superrich said they are increasingly establishing complex trusts for heirs and helping families navigate thorny money conversations. When the details are set, the advisers help tell millionaires’ and billionaires’ children that they will never, ever have to worry about money. 

For more information see Gunjan Banerji “Inside the ‘Trust Reveal,’ Where the Superrich Pass on Generational Wealth,” The Wall Street Journal, November 27, 2025.