Singapore Wealth Management Institute CEO Foo Mee Har: Inflow of Family Offices Bring Not Just Capital, But Knowledge, Networks, Skills & Talents, Some Families Give Generously to Build Schools, Hospitals, Scientific Advancements, Conservation & Relief Efforts
22nd April 2023 | Singapore
Singapore Wealth Management Institute (WMI) CEO Foo Mee Har in a Singapore Parliament address in her capacity as Member of Parliament spoke on inflow of family offices to Singapore – Family Offices bring not just capital, but knowledge, networks, skills & talents, some families giving generously to build schools, hospitals, scientific advancements, conservation & relief efforts. Wealth Management Institute CEO Foo Mee Har: “ The recent arrival of family offices to Singapore has generated much interest. From our experience, these families do not just bring capital, but also knowledge, networks, skills and talents as well. Some of these families also have a long track record of giving generously, sometimes stretching back across multiple generations. They have built schools and hospitals, funded scientific advancements, supported conservation efforts, and contributed generously to relief efforts. We are also seeing greater involvement of the next-generation of family principals who are increasingly focused on areas such as impact investments, venture capital and alternative investments. We welcome this inflow of family offices because they can bring many positive long-term benefits. I spoke about the need for us to do more to systematically on-board family offices into Singapore’s enterprise and investment ecosystem so they can quickly become active members of our venture community. We can also do more to help them connect the dots of the full spectrum of what Singapore has to offer. This will enable them to fast track capital deployment, co-invest, support enterprise and make philanthropic impact.” In 2023 March, the Wealth Management Institute (WMI) and the Private Banking Industry Group (PBIG) announced the launch of the Impact Philanthropy Partnership (IPP), which aims to bring together family principals and offices to tackle society’s most pressing challenges and issues. The IPP, supported by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), will create a dedicated series of events and research publications to build greater awareness and momentum for philanthropy and newer models of giving such as venture philanthropy and impact investing. See below for full address.
“ Inflow of Family Offices Bring Not Just Capital, But Knowledge, Networks, Skills & Talents, Some Families Giving Generously to Build Schools, Hospitals, Scientific Advancements, Conservation & Relief Efforts “
Wealth Management Institute CEO Foo Mee Har: Inflow of Family Offices Bring Not Just Capital
President’s Address – 14th Parliament 2nd Session Speech by Foo Mee Har, MP for West Coast GRC
I joined the Debate on the President’s Address on 18th April. My speech focused on the roles and impact of family offices in contributing to Singapore’s development.
The recent arrival of family offices to Singapore has generated much interest. From our experience, these families do not just bring capital, but also knowledge, networks, skills and talents as well. Some of these families also have a long track record of giving generously, sometimes stretching back across multiple generations. They have built schools and hospitals, funded scientific advancements, supported conservation efforts, and contributed generously to relief efforts. We are also seeing greater involvement of the next-generation of family principals who are increasingly focused on areas such as impact investments, venture capital and alternative investments.
We welcome this inflow of family offices because they can bring many positive long-term benefits. I spoke about the need for us to do more to systematically on-board family offices into Singapore’s enterprise and investment ecosystem so they can quickly become active members of our venture community. We can also do more to help them connect the dots of the full spectrum of what Singapore has to offer. This will enable them to fast track capital deployment, co-invest, support enterprise and make philanthropic impact.
On this front, WMI is pleased to have a role to play to support family offices’ integration through introducing the Global-Asia Family Office (GFO) Circle and the Impact Philanthropy Partnership (IPP) to bring family principals, advisors, and ecosystem partners together to learn from each other and collaborate. We are also supporting talent development for the industry and have trained more than 1,500 enrolments in family office-related programmes since 2020, with a target of 5,000 by 2025.
Singapore Wealth Management Institute Targets 5,000 Participants in WMI Family Office Programs by 2025, New Programs & Launch of Family Office Leadership Journal – WMI Impact
26th September 2022 – Singapore Wealth Management Institute (WMI) has announced an enrolment target of 5,000 family office participants in WMI Family Office Programs by 2025, supporting the increase in demand from family offices for family office professionals with diverse skillsets (Wealth Planning, Philanthropy, Governance, Family Office Operations etc). The Wealth Management Institute also announced new programs & initiatives (Investments & portfolio management, ESG, philanthropy, impact investing, trusts, governance, family office leadership), new research (Eg. Philanthropy Guide on Donor-Advised Funds, and a new leadership journal on family office topics – WMI Impact (Case studies, best practices and practical tools on in-demand topics such as investments, impact, entrepreneurship & governance). The announcements are made at the WMI 1st Global-Asia Family Office Summit (GFO Summit held at Singapore Sands Expo & Convention Centre, 26th – 27th September 2022), with more than 450 attendees worldwide. WMI CEO Foo Mee Har opening address at the GFO Summit: “Skilled talent will be the key enabler for the continued growth and development of family offices. The hunger and drive to learn and build expertise have been very evident. To serve the strong demand for capability building in the sector, WMI is gearing up to reach 5,000 enrolments into our family office programmes by 2025. We will press on in our efforts so that our learners can gain access to domain experts, change-makers, and distinguished global thought leaders.” Lim Chow Kiat, Chairman of WMI & CEO of GIC: “We are living through changing times, with profound uncertainties on multiple fronts. We need innovative solutions and creative capital to solve the many issues facing us. Family offices, with their higher flexibility and agility compared to institutional capital, can make a decisive contribution. I look forward to WMI’s initiatives in empowering family offices with the skills, knowledge and capabilities to take bold actions towards purposeful wealth in Singapore and Asia.”
WMI Family Office Programs, Global-Asia Family Office (GFO) Circle
Since 2020, WMI (Wealth Management Institute) had over 1,200 enrolments for family office-related programmes. In October 2021, it expanded beyond education into community building to launch the Global-Asia Family Office (GFO) Circle, with the support of EDB and MAS, to create a trusted environment for the family office ecosystem to build community, learn from each other, and access the latest thought leadership. Since its inception, the GFO Circle has received strong support from family offices and the broader ecosystem. The GFO Circle serves the ecosystem across family principals, family office professionals, advisors and partners.
Leading partners to the family office ecosystem have come together to form the founding cohort of 14 Corporate Members, who will work with WMI on initiatives to build deeper pools of expertise in the sector as a whole. These founding Corporate Members include Bank Julius Baer & Co, BNP Paribas, Credit Suisse, DBS Bank, Dentons Rodyk, Ernst & Young, J.P. Morgan Private Bank, KPMG in Singapore, LGT Private Banking, Schroders, UBS, Withersworldwide, WongPartnership, and Zedra Trust Company (Singapore).
WMI – 1st Global-Asia Family Office Summit
(GFO Summit, Singapore Sands Expo & Convention Centre, 26th – 27th September 2022)
The GFO Summit is organised by WMI and brings together leading family offices, advisors and thought leaders from Asia, the US, Europe and around the world, to learn from each other and address topics across investments, family office leadership and social impact. The Summit has drawn a diverse pool of participants across family offices, private banking, wealth management, asset management, trusts, legal, tax, estate planning, philanthropy advisory and professional services. The agenda features sharing by leading family offices as well as thought leaders from around the world from sovereign wealth funds, investment managers, university endowments, social change organisations, philanthropic foundations, private banks and family office advisors.
New Initiatives: New Programs , Philanthropy Guide on Donor-Advised Funds, WMI Impact on Family Office
WMI (Wealth Management Institute) also announced new programs & initiatives:
- New Programs (Critical Skills): Investments & portfolio management, ESG, philanthropy, impact investing, trusts, governance, family office leadership.
- New Research: Eg. Philanthropy Guide on Donor-Advised Funds (WMI & Private Banking Industry Group)
- New leadership journal on family office topics: Case studies, best practices and practical tools on in-demand topics such as investments, impact, entrepreneurship and governance
Foo Mee Har, WMI CEO:
“We have many exciting new initiatives in the pipeline to deepen the knowledge and expertise of Singapore’s talent pool to support the rapidly growing family office sector. We aim to play an active role through education and community building to seed new enterprise and innovation, make social impact, and further strengthen the family office ecosystem.
We warmly welcome family offices to co-create with us a platform to collaborate, share best practices and build new capabilities.”
Lim Chow Kiat, Chairman of WMI & CEO of GIC:
“We are living through changing times, with profound uncertainties on multiple fronts. We need innovative solutions and creative capital to solve the many issues facing us. Family offices, with their higher flexibility and agility compared to institutional capital, can make a decisive contribution. I look forward to WMI’s initiatives in empowering family offices with the skills, knowledge and capabilities to take bold actions towards purposeful wealth in Singapore and Asia.”
Wealth Management Institute (WMI)
Established in 2003, the Wealth Management Institute (WMI) is committed to building capabilities for investing in a better tomorrow. Founded by GIC and Temasek, our vision is to be Asia’s Centre of Excellence for wealth and asset management education and research. WMI is appointed as Singapore’s Lead Training Provider for Private Banking by the Institute of Banking and Finance Singapore (IBF) and supported by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). WMI also helms the Global-Asia Family Office Circle, a network platform that fosters a trusted environment to build capabilities and community in the space of family office. WMI provides a comprehensive suite of practice-based certification and diploma programmes and collaborates with leading universities for master’s qualifications. With over 18,000 annual enrolments, WMI provides training in asset management, wealth management, compliance, risk management, family office, family business, as well as the development of the next generation across more than 100 programmes.
Private Banking Industry Group
The Private Banking Industry Group comprises senior industry leaders and representatives from the private banking industry. It was re-constituted from the Private Banking Advisory Group in 2011, with the support of the Monetary Authority of Singapore to further strengthen the competency and market conduct standards of the private banking industry in Singapore. The Private Banking Industry Group is currently co-chaired by Monetary Authority of Singapore and UBS AG. The Private Banking Industry Group Executive Committee comprises the Association of Banks Singapore (ABS) and 14 banks.
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