How Family Offices Use Art and Collectibles as Loan Collateral

If we have selected the wrong experience for you, please change it above. We were delighted to announce that the 17th Deloitte Private Art & Finance Conference took place on Tuesday, 4 November 2025 , at Citi Global Headquarters in New York City. During the event, we presented the results of our 2025 Art & Finance Report (9th edition) and heard from panellists who discussed top-of-mind topics for wealth management professionals. The Great Wealth Transfer is well underway. As assets shift from one generation to the next, family offices are asked to meet the needs and preferences of this next generation of investors. They are different from their predecessors, and several questions can be asked: Will they see art as a viable investment vehicle? How will art be used for philanthropic and social impact? From art-secured lending trends and tax considerations to fractional investment and collection management, we explored the many innovations taking shape at the intersection of finance, culture, and business. Download your copy of the 2025 Art & Finance Report Click here A wealth of innovation: Bridging art and wealth management in 2025 John Psaila, CEO & Managing Partner, Deloitte Luxembourg Roger Arrieux, New York Managing Partner, Deloitte LLP Adriano Picinati di Torcello, Global Art & Finance Coordinator, Deloitte Luxembourg Christopher Bleuher, Senior Manager, Deloitte US Art &

Claude Monet’s ‘Bennecourt’, 1887, at Sotheby’s in New York. A wealthy client at Bank of America Corp. put up his fine-art collection so he could borrow enough to buy a sports franchise. Another posted his cache of 19th century American landscapes to renovate his estate. Such is the burgeoning world of art lending — where pieces are used to secure loans, allowing their affluent owners to tap their collections for cash without having to part with prized possessions. Art sales have slowed , forcing many to reevaluate their options. The major May New York auction season fell about 23% by value from the prior year, with the world’s richest waiting on the sidelines to buy.

Single family offices (SFOs) are institutionalizing their balance sheets and adopting a more mature and deliberate approach to leverage. More than three-quarters (76%) of SFOs are now borrowing to build liquidity, rather than at the point of need, according to Deutsche Bank Wealth Management’s 2025 Family Office Financing Report , and one in five increased leverage in the past year. This marks a step change in sophistication since the global financial crisis (GFC), when many family offices were forced into distressed sales. Now, the best-prepared SFOs are building liquidity “war chests” using nontraditional assets as collateral, and tapping new lending channels to ensure that they can move quickly when volatility hits or assets come to market. “Higher interest rates, the rebasing of commercial real estate valuations and volatility in cash flow to and from operating corporate interests mean our family offices are exploring a broader range of financing solutions,” says Adam Russ, Global Head of Wealth Management and Business Lending, Deutsche Bank Private Bank. “They have become increasingly sophisticated in pricing and maximizing the value of the recourse and disclosure they provide. This allows them to leverage private banks as their ‘relationship lenders’ quickly and attractively to explore financing on more specialist asset classes such as sports teams, art, wine or classic c

Education on the art market and its players Guidance on defining a purpose, vision, and strategy for the collection Support with the realization of collecting goals Legacy planning including collection governance and ownership structure Advice on collection management principles Guidance on creating impact with a collection Guidance on establishing a shared vision and strategy among family members Holistic assessment of family collections in the context of the overall family strategy and governance Education of family office professionals in relation to managing family collections Advice on collection alignment with corporate values and culture Guidance on leveraging a corporate collection for branding purposes Support with defining a framework and required resources to manage a corporate collection Advice on defining a clear collection purpose, vision and strategy Advice on defining a collection governance Guidance on setting up an acquisition plan Development or review of a collection governance including drafting a Collection Charter Advice on best management practices of a collection Support in identifying industry-leading third party providers in relation to collection management needs: – Appraisals and valutations – Insurance – Storage and logistics – Collection management systems – Monetization Insight sharing on collection legacy options and strategies Guidance on multi

If the secured party (transferee) has the right by contract or custom to sell or repledge the collateral, then paragraph 860-30-45-1 requires that the obligor (transferor) reclassify that asset and report that asset in its statement of financial position separately (for example, as security pledged to creditors) from other assets not so encumbered. If the secured party (transferee) sells collateral pledged to it, it shall recognize the proceeds from the sale and its obligation to return the collateral. The sale of the collateral is a transfer subject to the provisions of this Topic. If the obligor (transferor) defaults under the terms of the secured contract and is no longer entitled to redeem the pledged asset, it shall derecognize the pledged asset as required by paragraph 860-30-40-1 and the secured party (transferee) shall recognize the collateral as its asset. (See paragraph 860-30-30-1 for guidance on the secured party’s initial measurement of collateral recognized. See paragraph 860-30-40-1 for further guidance if the debtor has sold the collateral.) Except as provided in paragraph 860-30-40-1 the obligor (transferor) shall continue to carry the collateral as its asset, and the secured party (transferee) shall not recognize the pledged asset. Noncash financial assets (e.g., securities) that can be sold or repledged by the secured party. Recognize a receivable for the ret

Careful planning could help you achieve your wealth transfer goals without giving up the collections you adore. Challenges of transferring art to beneficiaries How trusts can support leaseback strategies and family outcomes Additional estate planning considerations for art collections When to start planning for your collection Of all possessions, fine art may be among the most personally meaningful, an expression of its owner’s values and sense of beauty. Yet art is also an important financial asset that should be carefully managed with your overall financial goals in mind, says Rosemary Ringwald, Head of Art Planning in the Planning Center of Excellence at Bank of America Private Bank. That’s especially true when it comes to estate planning. For those with valuable collections, common goals such as distributing wealth to loved ones as tax-efficiently as possible may conflict with another desire: continuing to enjoy the artworks they love. Here, Ringwald discusses some of the challenges and options to help ensure your art satisfies all of your priorities. Rosemary Ringwald, Head of Art Planning in the Planning Center of Excellence at Bank of America Private Bank. If you view your art as a legacy you hope will remain in the family, it is important to talk with beneficiaries early to ensure they share your passion. If they do, the main challenge is moving pieces out of your e