By K T Chandy
As business families prepare for generational transitions, wealth planning is evolving from a legal formality into a strategic imperative. The focus is increasingly on building institutional frameworks that ensure continuity, control and clarity across generations.
Governance structures
Increasingly, families are formalising their internal dynamics through family charters — documents that articulate the shared values, decision-making rights and protocols for capital deployment. Advisory boards, often comprising independent professionals, are being set up to bring strategic oversight for managing assets. Families are now defining who manages operating businesses, who oversees investments and who steers philanthropic initiatives. Mediation protocols or third-party arbitration are being embedded early to prevent disputes from escalating.
Succession planning
Families are increasingly using trust structures to separate beneficial ownership from control. This creates a buffer for learning, mentorship, and credibility-building. Families are adopting phased wealth transfer models, where heirs are gradually introduced to ownership and leadership through shadow boards, co-investment structures and mentorship programmes.
Legal instruments like trusts and Wills are now complemented by scenario planning. Families are stress-testing succession plans against variables such as regulatory changes, liquidity events, and geopolitical risks. This ensures that transitions are resilient, not just compliant.
Tax considerations
Tax strategy is being integrated into the core of wealth planning. With evolving rules around gift taxation, capital gains and cross-border transfers, families are reassessing legacy structures to ensure tax compliance and tax efficiency.
Capital gains optimisation, especially around business monetisation, secondary share sales, and real estate exits, is approached with precision. Families are evaluating jurisdictional structures, including offshore trusts, holding companies and philanthropic vehicles. Structured giving through family foundations or donor-advised funds allows families to align impact with tax efficiency, while embedding purpose into their legacy.
Next-gen readiness
Preparing the next generation is perhaps the most transformative aspect of wealth planning. The goal is to build individuals who understand risk, navigate complexity and align personal purpose with family legacy. This includes curated learning journeys covering macroeconomics, legal frameworks, ESG, and impact investing.
Next-gen wealth planning is no longer a back-office function, it’s rather a boardroom priority. Families that institutionalise governance, design structured succession, optimise tax strategy, and invest in heir-readiness are not just preserving wealth but they are building legacy.
The writer is partner and co-leader, Private Tax, EY India. Inputs from Vinay K, tax partner, EY India