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On the surface, running a family office may appear to be a more glamorous suit than overseeing a wealth management practice, but there are plenty of similarities between the two pursuits, particularly when an advisor focuses on ultra-high-net-worth clients.
That is to say advisors can take clues from family offices and when applicable, mirror their investment playbooks, the latter of which is becoming increasingly easy. Advisors can take heart in knowing that family offices do the same, deploying some strategies that advisors have long leaned as avenues for protecting clients when volatility increases.
“Family offices are in risk-management mode, with more than two-thirds (68%) focused on increasing diversification, and nearly half (47%) increasing their use of a variety of sources of return, including illiquid alternatives, ex-US equities, liquid alternatives, and cash,” according to BlackRock’s 2025 Global Family Office Survey. Those data points are merely the beginning of the clues advisors can take from the study.
Angles on Family Office Asset Allocation
Not surprisingly, alternative assets are top of mind for many family office managers – a trend that’s been percolating for some time and one that’s likely to have a long lifespan.
“Looking ahead, private credit and infrastructure are the most-favored alternative assets,” notes BlackRock. “Nearly one-third (32%) of family offices intend to increase their allocations to private credit (32%) and infrastructure (30%) in 2025-2026, with allocations to private credit marking the highest figure for any alternative asset class. When it comes to choosing a particular strategy within private credit, respondents have a clear preference for special situations/opportunistic and direct lending.”
Regarding private credit, the good news for advisors is that, thanks in large part to the exchange traded funds (ETFs) industry, this is an asset class that’s easier than ever to access. It’s no longer confined to institutional investors and the ultra-wealthy.
As is the case with advisors, family office managers are prioritizing new opportunities of diversification and uncorrelated returns – something infrastructure and private credit assist with – placing added emphasis on identifying the right strategies.
“The sustained demand and interest in private credit and infrastructure from family offices is a testament to the illiquidity premia and differentiated return opportunity in the current investment landscape,” observes Lili Forouraghi, Head of Family Office, Healthcare, Endowment and Foundations for BlackRock. “Access to opportunities and the right strategies continue to rise in importance as these asset classes evolve from niche strategies to the cornerstone of client portfolios.”
Another Advisor/Family Office Similarity
Family offices and wealth management firms share something else in common: increasing dependence on technology. That includes an interest in artificial intelligence (AI), acknowledgements that AI could be beneficial and some related reservations.
As is the case with advisors, family offices see value in AI from an investment perspective and as a management tool, but they’re leery of using AI on an internal basis to bolster the investment process.
“A strong majority of family offices indicated that they would consider using AI for a variety of tasks from risk management to cash-flow modeling,” adds BlackRock. “However, there are technical and organizational barriers to greater adoption. Currently, family offices are far more likely to invest in tech firms building AI solutions (45%), or in investment opportunities that they believe will benefit from the growth in AI (51%), than they are to deploy AI tech internally to improve the investing process (33%).”