When only the best will do. What our private banking and wealth management survey says

Wealth managers say there is a marked increase in clients, alarmed by political rhetoric, inquiring about protecting their assets, with many wanting to move them offshore. That is tied to perceptions of increased corruption in government and radical rhetoric that is perceived to threaten the value of assets. Other pressing concerns for the providers of private banking and wealth management services are increasing and costly compliance burdens and a need to stay on the cutting edge of technology — also an expensive undertaking — to ensure they provide full value to clients."It’s no secret that the past 18 months have been extremely difficult," says Brian Butchart, MD of Brenthurst Wealth Management. "Clients are concerned in terms of performance — that’s a big factor." He notes that returns on investments are generally down to post-2008 levels, when markets had been badly affected by the global financial crisis. Investors are being further squeezed by rising costs, says Philip Faure,...