Van Lanschot Kempen publishes first Benelux Family Office Report, revealing a rapidly evolving and increasingly sophisticated sector.
Family offices in the Benelux region are growing rapidly in number, expanding their capabilities, and becoming more professional than ever before, according to the inaugural Benelux Family Office Report 2025 released by Van Lanschot Kempen Private Banking, in collaboration with Mercier Van Lanschot and global family-office research specialist Campden Wealth.
Based on extensive interviews and surveys with 59 family offices in the Netherlands and Belgium – spanning operations in the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Switzerland and Liechtenstein – the report offers a unique, data-driven look into a segment that has become increasingly influential within the regional wealth-management landscape.
A sector on the rise
One of the clearest findings is the explosive growth of family offices across the Benelux. One in 3 participating family offices was established within the past 5 years.
60 percent of the offices surveyed were founded since 2010, reflecting how families with significant wealth increasingly opt for a structured, professionalized approach to managing their financial and non-financial affairs.
The participating family offices collectively oversee an average total wealth of 1.393 billion euros, with average assets under management (excluding operating businesses) of 654 million euros.
This growth comes amid a landscape of shifting socioeconomic dynamics, changing investment environments, and accelerating generational transitions – all factors that demand more specialized governance, professional investment capabilities, and tailored succession planning.
Evolving role of the family office
The role of the family office has expanded far beyond its traditional remit of preserving wealth over generations. Today, they are multi-functional platforms overseeing investments, business activities, legacy planning, and governance.
Dominic Samuelson, CEO of Campden Wealth, highlights this evolution: “Where family offices once focused primarily on safeguarding wealth, today they serve as centralized hubs for investments, entrepreneurship, governance, and succession. Their popularity across the Benelux is rising swiftly.”
This transformation aligns with broader global trends, where first-generation wealth creators and next-generation family stakeholders increasingly seek institutional-grade structures to manage complex portfolios, philanthropic initiatives, and cross-border assets.
Investment strategy: Long-term, active, and private-equity-driven
Benelux family offices overwhelmingly follow buy-and-hold investment strategies, maintaining stable portfolios that are adjusted only gradually over time. Rather than taking a passive approach, they engage actively in evaluating and managing their investments – often favoring direct involvement and long-term value creation.
Portfolio composition
The report shows a clear pattern in asset allocation:
27% – Listed equities
27% – Private equity
18% – Real estate
Remainder – Fixed income, alternatives, and other assets
Every single participating family office invests in private equity, underlining its status as a central pillar of their strategy. Historically, this asset class has delivered the highest returns, albeit with higher risk. Notably, 42 percent plan to increase their private-equity exposure in the coming year, more than for any other asset class.
Tim Casteels, member of the management committee at Mercier Van Lanschot, explains: “Family offices behave as long-term investors. They engage deeply with their investments, seek out promising opportunities, and focus on value creation before exiting. This leads to low turnover and stable portfolio structures. Private equity, alongside public equities, remains core to their strategy.”
Governance and professionalization on the rise
As wealth structures become more complex, family offices are rapidly professionalizing their management and governance practices.
Key trends include:
• Leadership roles remain family-dominated at board level, while executive roles are increasingly filled by external professionals or outsourced.
• Investment committees are widely established.
• Over 40 percent have a formal mission statement.
Yet, many lack structures such as family councils or formal boards, partly because a large share (nearly 60%) represents first-generation family offices, where governance needs tend to be less institutionalized.
Wendy Winkelhuijzen, member of the Executive Board at Van Lanschot Kempen, notes: “We observed clear trends: a high proportion of first-generation founders, more external professionals in key roles, and strong emphasis on private equity. But family offices recognize that greater effort is needed to manage increasing investment complexity, leverage technology, and prepare the next generation.”
She adds: “Ultimately, a family office is a platform for building a legacy for future generations and for society. That requires a personal, tailored approach and meaningful dialogue about wealth, succession, and philanthropy.”
Preparing the next generation
More than half of family offices expect a leadership transition within the next decade, mirroring the surge of new offices founded after 2000 and the generational cycles that are now coming to maturity.
To prepare heirs for future responsibility:
• Around one-third offer structured personal-development plans and mentoring.
• Many provide external work placements, training programs, and opportunities to gain experience outside the family business.
• These initiatives aim to ensure continuity, align family values, and foster responsible stewardship among younger generations.
Values and philanthropy: Entrepreneurship at the Core
Entrepreneurship stands out as the primary value among Benelux family offices, a reflection of the fact that nearly 60 percent are still led by first-generation wealth creators. Integrity, trust, and honesty also rank highly.
Philanthropy and impact play a major role:
• 70 percent engage in philanthropic giving.
• 40 percent are active in impact investing, seeking both financial returns and positive social or environmental outcomes.
• 1 in 3 families has its own foundation.
The motivations are largely altruistic:
• 79 percent want to make a contribution to society.
• 55 percent aim to uphold family values.
This underlines the growing importance of purpose-driven wealth management and the desire among wealthy families to align their financial wealth with societal impact.
A sector growing in scale and influence
The findings of the Benelux Family Office Report 2025 reveal a sector that is expanding rapidly, maturing structurally, and becoming more engaged in long-term, value-driven activities; from private equity and direct investing to philanthropy and succession planning.
With significant assets under management and increasing influence in local economies, Benelux family offices are expected to play an ever more prominent role in shaping entrepreneurial ecosystems, investing in innovation, and supporting societal goals.
The report provides a detailed snapshot of a sector in transition, one that is moving from founder-led origins to institutional-grade sophistication, while retaining the values and long-term perspective that define multi-generational family wealth.
