\n India’s wealth management landscape is undergoing a profound transformation, shaped by geopolitical shifts, regulatory evolution and an increasingly mobile client base. As families extend their footprint across jurisdictions, the question is no longer simply where to hold wealth, but how to structure it in a way that accommodates divergent legal systems, shifting tax regimes and multi-generational aspirations.
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\nAt the Hubbis India Wealth Management Forum 2026, held in Mumbai, the second panel discussion of the day, chaired by Rohit Bhardwaj, Country Head – India, Director Private Clients, Henley & Partners, explored these themes with a group of international practitioners spanning law, trust administration, insurance and structuring. Among them, Varun Kalsi, Partner and Director of Private Client at Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., offered a practitioner’s perspective on how Indian families and their advisers are navigating the complexities of cross-border structuring, and why the path forward demands both patience and precision.\n <\/p>\n
Key Takeaways<\/p>\n
\n\tGeopolitical Shifts Are Redirecting Capital Flows: Changing sentiment in certain jurisdictions is prompting families to reassess where they hold and structure wealth, with Singapore, UK, Switzerland and Hong Kong seeing renewed interest.
\n\tTwo Distinct Client Profiles Are Emerging: Families with wealth already externalised through legitimate channels face different structuring questions from those now looking to move capital abroad for the first time.
\n\tIndia’s Regulatory Framework Is Progressive but Complex: GIFT City is drawing attention as a forward-looking regulatory environment, though the pace of simplification remains a challenge for advisers and clients alike.
\n\tCommon Law and Civil Law Distinctions Matter: The choice between a trust and a foundation is not merely technical; it carries significant tax and legal implications depending on where the settlor and beneficiaries are tax resident.
\n\tSuccession Planning Is a Process, Not an Event: Families who treat structuring as a one-off exercise risk encountering tax inefficiencies, governance gaps and intergenerational friction.
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Geopolitical Realignment and Jurisdiction Shopping<\/p>\n
Kalsi opened by noting a discernible shift in the competitive dynamics between wealth structuring jurisdictions. Where Singapore and the UAE had been growing at comparable rates in recent years, he observed that sentiment in the UAE appears to have softened somewhat, with Singapore, UK, and perhaps, Switzerland benefiting from the rebalancing.<\/p>\n
\u201cSomebody’s loss is another person’s gain,\u201d he remarked, pointing to an increase in enquiries routed through Singapore, where he has been based for the past five years while shuttling between Singapore, UAE and Gift city to cater to client needs.<\/p>\n
Other panellists echoed this observation from different vantage points. One participant noted that while clients in the UAE were not necessarily relocating, they were increasingly interested in offshore diversification as a way of ensuring they did not have all their eggs in one basket. Another highlighted a notable reversal of flows between Hong Kong and Singapore, with some families now exploring Hong Kong as a structuring base, having moved away from it several years ago.<\/p>\n
Two Client Profiles, Two Sets of Challenges<\/p>\n
Kalsi drew a useful distinction between two categories of Indian families seeking cross-border structures. The first comprises families who have already accumulated wealth offshore over time, often through the liberalised remittance scheme or through family members who have taken up employment \u00a0abroad. The second, and increasingly common, group consists of families in India, including those in tier two and tier three cities, who are only now beginning to explore the externalisation of wealth.<\/p>\n
He noted that non-resident Indian status can arise from two separate angles under Indian law: tax residency on one hand, and foreign exchange regulations on the other. This dual classification adds a layer of complexity that families and their advisers must address at the outset.<\/p>\n
For families who already hold assets abroad, the challenge tends to centre on wrapping an appropriate succession and governance framework around an existing pool of capital. As one participant put it, \u201cThat money has grown into a fairly substantial pot. The next question is how do you put a succession structure and plan around that.\u201d For those only now looking to externalise, the starting point is different: understanding the regulatory pathway for moving capital out of India. Kalsi noted that while India maintains strong capital controls, there are established and legitimate processes through which this can be achieved, and the first step is always to clarify the client’s objectives before recommending a path.<\/p>\n
Common Law, Civil Law and the Structuring Toolkit<\/p>\n
A recurring theme in Kalsi’s contributions was the importance of matching the structuring vehicle to the legal system in which it will operate. Trusts, he noted, tend to function effectively in common law jurisdictions such as India, the United Kingdom, Singapore and Australia, whereas foundations may be more appropriate in civil law systems, with the UAE being a prominent example.<\/p>\n
This distinction carries particular weight for Indian families. Kalsi observed that India’s income tax legislation recognises a trust but does not appear to do so for a foundation as understood in civil law jurisdictions. He cautioned that when a beneficiary based in India receives a distribution from a foundation established in a UAE free zone, the Indian tax authority may treat it either as a distribution from a trust or as income from a foreign company, the latter of which could attract a higher tax burden.<\/p>\n
Several panellists reinforced the point that no single vehicle can serve all purposes. One participant described seeing parallel structures in practice, such as a Singapore trust managing one pool of assets alongside a family office in Dubai managing another. The same participant noted that it is now not uncommon to see a foundation acting as trustee of a trust, illustrating the degree to which structuring has become a composite exercise rather than a single-product decision.<\/p>\n
Another panellist offered a vivid analogy, comparing the structuring process to assembling building blocks. Trusts, foundations, holding companies and insurance each serve as distinct pieces of hardware. The real skill lies in assembling them according to the family’s needs, and in ensuring the \u201csoftware,\u201d the governance arrangements, letters of wishes and legal frameworks, is equally well considered.<\/p>\n
GIFT City: Progress and Patience<\/p>\n
On the question of whether India can credibly position itself as a global wealth management hub, Kalsi was broadly positive but candid. He described the GIFT City regulator as a progressive Indian origin regulator (given that it is an Ifsc), noting that it is receptive to feedback and willing to engage with practitioners on practical challenges. However, he acknowledged that the broader Indian regulatory environment remains demanding, with a certain amount of grey in play.<\/p>\n
He contrasted the Indian regulatory culture with that of Singapore, where rules tend to be binary: something is either permitted or it is not. In India, he suggested, the answer is more often \u201cmaybe,\u201d a characterisation that drew knowing recognition from the audience. While this ambiguity may, he conceded, be unfortunately useful for legal and tax advisors, it is a pain-point for clients seeking certainty.<\/p>\n
Kalsi also alluded to encouraging developments, including the introduction of variable capital company (\u201cVCC\u201d) frameworks in GIFT City and the recent approval of the first inbound family investment fund. Yet he also flagged practical bottlenecks, such as the overburdened National Company Law Tribunal, which could be the forum that will also address any winding up or other matters concerning the Gift city VCCs, when that commences.<\/p>\n
Succession as a Journey, Not a Destination<\/p>\n
The panel’s closing remarks converged on a single theme: the importance of treating succession planning as an ongoing, evolving process rather than a single transaction.<\/p>\n
Kalsi urged advisers to begin by listening. \u201cUnderstand the objectives,\u201d he said. \u201cLook at any regulatory issues. Understand where the beneficiaries are or are going to be located.\u201d He encouraged clients to think of a trust as a family member, suggesting that when they adopt that mindset, they tend to engage more constructively with the governance obligations that accompany structured wealth.<\/p>\n
One participant reinforced this by observing that the greatest threat to wealth transfer is not tax or regulation but family conflict, and that planning for relationship risk remains an area that is underserved across the industry. Another was direct in framing the stakes: the aim should be to create structures that allow wealth to pass seamlessly from one generation to the next, rather than being eroded by tax liabilities that could, in some jurisdictions, reach as high as 40 percent of the inheritance.<\/p>\n
\u201cSuccession is not a trigger event,\u201d a participant observed. \u201cIt’s a journey, and that starts long before the trigger event.\u201d<\/p>\n
A Landscape in Motion<\/p>\n
India’s wealth structuring ecosystem is evolving rapidly, shaped by regulatory reform, jurisdictional competition and the growing sophistication of its client base. As Kalsi and his fellow panellists made clear, the families that navigate this landscape most effectively are likely to be those that invest early in understanding their options, engage specialist advice across jurisdictions, and recognise that the structures they put in place today must be flexible enough to accommodate the uncertainties of tomorrow.<\/p>\n
The tools are available. The regulatory environment, while imperfect, is improving. What remains essential is the willingness to treat structuring not as a formality, but as a discipline.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"India’s wealth management landscape is undergoing a profound transformation, shaped by geopolitical shifts, regulatory evolution and an increasingly…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":869100,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[219760,219764,219772,219768,219759,219763,219771,219767,219761,219765,219773,219769,219758,219762,219770,219766,64,63,99,18608,186,184,185,1542],"class_list":["post-869099","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-personal-finance","tag-asia-private-banking","tag-asia-private-banking-news","tag-asia-private-banking-online-training","tag-asia-private-banking-training","tag-asia-wealth-management","tag-asia-wealth-management-news","tag-asia-wealth-management-online-training","tag-asia-wealth-management-training","tag-asian-private-banking","tag-asian-private-banking-news","tag-asian-private-banking-online-training","tag-asian-private-banking-training","tag-asian-wealth-management","tag-asian-wealth-management-news","tag-asian-wealth-management-online-training","tag-asian-wealth-management-training","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-business","tag-e-learning","tag-finance","tag-personal-finance","tag-personalfinance","tag-training"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/869099","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=869099"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/869099\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/869100"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=869099"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=869099"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=869099"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}