Fiduciary Risks Rise as Trust-Owned Art Collections Face Succession Deadlines

If we have selected the wrong experience for you, please change it above. This publication is a barometer for emerging trends and sentiment in the art and finance industry and highlights developments in the art and wealth management space. The 2025 edition of the biennial Deloitte Private and ArtTactic Art & Finance Report arrives amid market stagnation, shifting collector values, and an unprecedented global wealth transfer, with an estimated $992 billion in art and collectibles expected to change hands over the next decade. As the art and finance ecosystem adapts to demands for transparency, inclusivity, and purpose, innovation and strategic engagement are more critical than ever. Since 2011, the report has tracked the integration of art into wealth management . Over the last 14 years, what began as a question of relevance has become a matter of execution: in 2011, only a quarter of wealth managers offered art-related services; today, 51% do, reflecting a gradual shift in perception and practice. This edition draws on insights from 57 experts and nearly 500 survey responses , featuring stakeholders across the art and finance industry, including private banks, family offices, collectors, and art professionals. It features 30 articles from leading industry professionals , including contributions from eight Deloitte offices across the world. It explores how next-generation collec

For many affluent families, a family office has become an indispensable ally in preserving and growing wealth and managing financial complexities. More than 4,500 family offices (triple the number in 2019) together manage some $6 trillion in assets. 1 Yet even as they advise on investments ranging from private equity to real estate and mineral rights, family offices may not fully account for the implications of another kind of asset: art collections. “A significant collection may affect a family’s larger financial picture, from liquidity and credit to risk management and wealth transfer,” says Elizabeth Thiessen, head of Family Office Solutions at Bank of America Private Bank. “It’s vital to bring a similar level of planning and strategy to art and collectibles as you do for other asset classes.” It’s vital to bring a similar level of planning and strategy to art and collectibles as you do for other asset classes. Of course, a painting is not a share of stock. “Most collectors invest for personal pleasure and buy what they love,” says Rosemary Ringwald, Head of Art Planning, Planning Center of Excellence, Bank of America Private Bank. The emotional component makes a potential acquisition more nuanced and subjective than, say, buying into a hedge fund. Moreover, the art market can be complex, opaque and mystifying to outsiders. For all their expertise in portio

Without a plan for the transfer of assets and management control, your company can be vulnerable to operational disruption, debilitating tax obligations or internal conflict among beneficiaries. An important starting point is a thorough inventory of your business assets and documents, including ownership structures, real estate, intellectual property, insurance policies and retirement accounts. If you’ve been living on the income from your business, you’ll need a detailed plan to invest the proceeds from the sale of the business to replace your compensation. For many successful business owners, the daily demands of running a company leave little time to think about what happens next. In fact, according to Forbes , 1 85% have business estate plans that are outdated or insufficient. Yet, allowing planning for the future of your business to slip onto the “someday” list of priorities can have serious unintended consequences, putting your hard-earned legacy at risk. While most people think of tools like wills and trusts in the context of preserving and passing on personal wealth after the owner’s death, estate planning is just as critical in protecting and safeguarding business assets. Absent a clearly articulated, legal plan for the transfer of its assets and management, your company can be vulnerable to operational disruption, debilitating tax obligations or internal conflict amon

This is the first part of a feature on fiduciary structures for family art collections, written by Randall Willette of Fine Art Wealth Management and Matt Litten of Collas Crill Trust. This is the first half of a feature, drawn from an abstract from a new White Paper on Fiduciary Structures for Family Art Collections. It is written by Randall Willette of Fine Art Wealth Management (also a member of WealthBriefing’s editorial advisory board) and Matt Litten of Collas Crill Trust . They consider the key issues facing sophisticated art collectors who seek to establish fiduciary structures - such as trusts and foundations - for the long-term protection and management of family art collections. As ever, the editors of this news service invite readers to respond with their own views. Introduction A new generation of wealth is emerging, for which art is increasingly becoming an important component of their overall tax and estate planning to put under the care of trust and estate practitioners. A growing number of wealthy families are art lovers, own collections or actively buy and sell in the art market. They require someone who shares and understands their passion for art and appreciates the pleasure of investing in art of high value. A recent report by Deloitte Luxembourg and ArtTactic suggests 76 per cent of those surveyed acquired art and collectibles from an investment viewpoint,