Phil­an­thro­pic Wealth Plan­ning Across Generations

As a mandate mana­ger and wealth plan­ner at FINAD, Olivier Fricker supports wealthy indi­vi­du­als, entre­pre­neu­rial fami­lies and foun­da­ti­ons in all finan­cial and asset-rela­ted matters. His daily work ranges from deve­lo­ping long-term asset stra­te­gies and asset allo­ca­tion and mana­ger selec­tion to succes­sion plan­ning, wealth struc­tu­ring and gover­nance issues. A key part of his work at FINAD is analy­zing complex asset situa­tions and deri­ving suita­ble, client-speci­fic measu­res from them. “Many fami­lies have assets with diffe­rent banks, holdings in compa­nies, dome­stic and foreign real estate or foun­da­tion struc­tures,” explains Olivier Fricker. “We create trans­pa­rency, define goals and deve­lop corre­spon­ding stra­te­gies – inde­pendently and without our own product interests.”

Phil­an­thropy is not a secon­dary issue, but an inte­gral part of holi­stic wealth plan­ning. Accor­ding to Fricker, many of FINAD’s clients will sooner or later ask them­sel­ves the ques­tion: “What contri­bu­tion do I want to make?” – be it soci­ally, cultu­rally, scien­ti­fi­cally or in terms of social welfare. “Our role is to struc­ture the finan­cial foun­da­ti­ons in such a way that entre­pre­neu­rial success, family secu­rity and phil­an­thro­pic commit­ment are in harm­ony with one another.” Because phil­an­thropy, like inves­t­ing, needs a stra­tegy and a clear plan.

Long-term orien­ta­tion for sustainable impact

Howe­ver, foun­da­ti­ons them­sel­ves are also an important group of clients for FINAD. In concrete terms, FINAD supports foun­da­ti­ons both at the stra­te­gic and opera­tio­nal level. The focus is on the foundation’s purpose and the ques­tion of how this can be recon­ci­led with the finan­cial and regu­la­tory frame­work condi­ti­ons. Invest­ment stra­te­gies are not defi­ned once and then left to their own devices, but are regu­larly reviewed and further developed.

Another key area of focus is gover­nance. FINAD supports foun­da­tion boards in clari­fy­ing roles and struc­tu­ring decis­ion-making proces­ses. “Our task is to reli­eve foun­da­tion board members of opera­tio­nal and stra­te­gic tasks and to provide them with guidance,” says Fricker. This also includes selec­ting suita­ble invest­ments and asset mana­gers, as well as ongo­ing, inde­pen­dent control­ling. Quality, costs and perfor­mance are conti­nuously moni­to­red and presen­ted in a compre­hen­si­ble form. FINAD produ­ces custo­mi­zed reports that conso­li­date complex asset struc­tures and provide the foun­da­tion board with a clear basis for decision-making.

A key aspect is the balance between preser­ving capi­tal, making predic­ta­ble distri­bu­ti­ons, and adhe­ring to the speci­fic invest­ment guide­lines of the respec­tive mandate. “Foun­da­ti­ons think long-term and across gene­ra­ti­ons,” Fricker empha­si­zes. “This perspec­tive is very much in line with our family office approach.”

Inter­ge­ne­ra­tio­nal Wealth Planning

As a family office, FINAD does not think in terms of indi­vi­dual products or isola­ted invest­ment decis­i­ons. Accor­ding to Fricker, the company takes a holi­stic view of its clients’ assets (and life situa­tion). This includes stra­te­gic asset allo­ca­tion as well as coor­di­na­tion with tax consul­tants, lawy­ers, banks and other specia­lists. Issues such as gover­nance, succes­sion and inhe­ri­tance law, or the struc­tu­ring of invest­ments, real estate and alter­na­tive assets are also part of the advi­sory services. All of these are issues that are often also important aspects in the context of estab­li­shing a foundation. 

FINAD sees itself as a spar­ring part­ner on an equal footing, often across gene­ra­ti­ons and deca­des. “What is parti­cu­larly moving are moments when seve­ral gene­ra­ti­ons sit toge­ther at a table and talk about values, not just about returns,” says Fricker. “When parents and child­ren start to discuss respon­si­bi­lity, impact and legacy, wealth plan­ning suddenly beco­mes very tangi­ble and human.” In such situa­tions, it beco­mes clear that it is not just about capi­tal, but about iden­tity, atti­tude and shaping the future.

“Phil­an­thropy begins with one’s own values”

In his work, Fricker often finds that wealth is initi­ally unders­tood as an expres­sion of entre­pre­neu­rial success or as a respon­si­bi­lity towards one’s own family. Only in a second step does the ques­tion of social impact arise. “This is exactly where FINAD comes in,” he says. “We struc­ture the econo­mic basis in such a way that long-term commit­ment is possi­ble without jeopar­di­zing finan­cial stabi­lity.” Accor­ding to Fricker, phil­an­thropy does not begin with dona­ti­ons, but with one’s own values, wishes and long-term goals. 

For many donors – or those who are conside­ring this step – it is reassu­ring to know that phil­an­thropy and profes­sio­nal wealth stra­tegy are not mutually exclu­sive. On the contrary, says Fricker: “Those who want to achieve sustainable impact need struc­ture, clear convic­tions and long-term plan­ning.” This ranges from the purpose of the foun­da­tion to the invest­ment regu­la­ti­ons and the selec­tion and manage­ment of the manage­ment mandates.

Accom­pany­ing complex decis­ion-making processes

Howe­ver, the work of a family office is often redu­ced to clas­sic asset manage­ment – perfor­mance, markets and return figu­res. “That is a gross over­sim­pli­fi­ca­tion,” says Fricker. In reality, FINAD sees itself more as a stra­te­gic part­ner and faci­li­ta­tor of complex decis­ion-making proces­ses. “We work on gover­nance struc­tures, support gene­ra­tio­nal change, struc­ture entre­pre­neu­rial assets and help our clients define clear guide­lines for their capi­tal.” This is less visi­ble than a wealth report, but more important in the long term.

Inde­pen­dence is also often unde­re­sti­ma­ted. “Since we do not sell our own products and have no hidden incen­ti­ves, FINAD is exclu­si­vely on the side of its clients,” explains Fricker. This some­ti­mes means advi­sing against seemingly attrac­tive oppor­tu­ni­ties or deli­bera­tely recom­men­ding caution. There is also an aspect that is rarely visi­ble in the public domain. “It is often over­loo­ked how much trust and discre­tion are essen­tial to our work,” says Fricker. Much of what FINAD does is deli­bera­tely done behind the scenes. “We are not looking for a public stage. Our goal is to create added value in a comple­tely unas­sum­ing way.”

Digi­ta­liza­tion without distance

The most important prio­rity for FINAD at the moment is to ensure stabi­lity and orien­ta­tion in a geopo­li­ti­cally and econo­mic­ally chal­len­ging envi­ron­ment. Vola­ti­lity in the markets, inte­rest rate chan­ges, geopo­li­ti­cal tensi­ons and struc­tu­ral chan­ges require a clean, well-conside­red and stra­te­gic approach. 

At the same time, FINAD is conti­nuously working to further deve­lop its own orga­niza­tion, improve the custo­mer expe­ri­ence and opti­mize its services by using modern tech­no­lo­gies – without losing the perso­nal touch. “We always see digi­ta­liza­tion and arti­fi­cial intel­li­gence as tools, not as a repla­ce­ment for perso­nal advice,” says Fricker. FINAD uses tech­no­lo­gi­cal solu­ti­ons to conso­li­date data better, make report­ing more effi­ci­ent and prepare scena­rio analy­ses in a struc­tu­red way. Howe­ver, stra­te­gic decis­i­ons, ques­ti­ons of values and complex family struc­tures cannot be auto­ma­ted. “Here, human dialo­gue remains central,” Fricker emphasizes.

Digi­tal asset manage­ment – steps to the mandate

In the webi­nar of the “Digi­tal Asset Manage­ment” series, experts from FINAD and ECOFIN will show how foun­da­ti­ons can gradu­ally trans­fer their invest­ment stra­tegy into a profes­sio­nal mandate. Parti­ci­pants will learn why inde­pen­dence, cost effi­ci­ency and good gover­nance are crucial for sustainable and high-quality asset manage­ment.

Free Webi­nar
Part of the webi­nar series “Digi­tal asset manage­ment”
With experts from FINAD and ECOFIN
23 March 2026, 4–5pm

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