Citywealth Quick Insight Series on Family Office Dynamics: Ross Munro, Harneys Fiduciary
This week’s Quick Insight Series on family dynamics and family office dynamics is dedicated to Ross Munro, CEO of Harneys Fiduciary.
What sets your business apart when it comes to supporting families, entrepreneurs, and corporations?
A: Every client has their own story, and our role is to understand their needs and how we can best achieve their goals. By taking the time to actively listen to our clients, we are able to build structures that reflect who they are and their objectives, whether that’s protecting assets, planning for succession, or driving growth.
Over the past 50 years, we’ve developed deep technical expertise across the world’s key financial centres. But what truly sets us apart is trust- the kind that’s earned through clarity, consistency, and practical solutions.
Our team operates across ten jurisdictions and represents 43 nationalities, bringing both local insight and global perspective. Clients know that when they work with us, they’re supported by people who care about their long-term success, not just the transaction in front of them.
How do family values influence the way wealth is preserved and passed on to future generations?
Family values sit at the heart of every wealth plan. They define what matters most, not just financially, but personally.
We recently worked with a Malaysian family whose patriarch had built a successful hotel business of five properties, anchored by a landmark hotel in Kuala Lumpur. As his health declined, his priority was simple: keep the business in the family and preserve what he had built. He cared more about continuity and family unity than about chasing tax efficiency.
We established an offshore trust for his five children and their families, designed around those principles. The structure ensured the Kuala Lumpur hotel, which employed many relatives, would always remain in family hands, while allowing flexibility to sell the other properties if the right opportunity arose.
It’s a reminder that effective succession planning isn’t just about protecting wealth, it’s about protecting what is important to each family.
How do you help families navigate conversations around wealth and succession?
Open dialogue is key to preserving both wealth and relationships. We help families create a structured environment where every generation has a voice, turning what can be sensitive conversations into forward-looking discussions about shared goals and responsibilities.
In one case, we worked with international tax advisors to design a series of trust structures tailored to the different residencies and needs of each branch of the family. This not only ensured the right planning for each member but also gave the family a clear, cohesive framework for managing their collective legacy. Our role is to bring clarity, structure, and neutrality to the table, helping families make confident decisions that stand the test of time.
How can parents plan effectively for the long-term financial security of a child who may not be able to manage their own affairs in adulthood?
Planning for a child’s long-term wellbeing requires care, foresight, and trust. We recently worked with a Singaporean couple whose primary objective was securing the future of their child with special needs, to ensure their child would always be supported, no matter what life brought.
We helped them establish a trust designed to provide lifelong financial protection and stability. Just as importantly, we focused on building a strong relationship between the family and the trustee, so that the child’s needs would continue to be met well into adulthood. It’s about giving parents confidence that, even in their absence, their child will always have the care, protection, and support they deserve.
What role does cross-border legal and tax collaboration play in ensuring smooth wealth transitions for families relocating internationally?
Cross-border planning is essential when families move between jurisdictions, it ensures that wealth transitions are not only compliant but aligned with long-term family goals.
We recently supported an ultra-high-net-worth family relocating to the U.S. by establishing an irrevocable trust that incorporated underlying offshore entities and relevant banking arrangements. Working closely with international tax and legal advisors, we coordinated a detailed cross-border analysis to ensure the structure met regulatory requirements in each jurisdiction.
Following the family’s relocation, we oversaw a restructuring of the trust fund, including the liquidation of certain entities, to simplify management and ensure the assets continued to reflect the settlor’s intentions and the trust’s objectives.
Ultimately, collaboration across borders is what turns complex, multi-jurisdictional planning into a smooth and secure transition for the families we support.
How do you approach cross-border estate planning when a family has an incapacitated beneficiary?
When a family includes an incapacitated beneficiary, careful cross-border planning becomes even more important- it’s about protecting both the individual and their long-term wellbeing.
We recently worked with a Latin American family to establish, and act as trustee of, an irrevocable trust designed to provide lifelong support for an incapacitated beneficiary. To ensure full compliance, we collaborated with local tax and legal advisors across the jurisdictions of both the settlor and the beneficiaries, taking into account complex forced heirship considerations.
The trust was structured to guarantee that the beneficiary’s maintenance and medical needs would always be met. Alongside this, we introduced a trust transaction monitoring programme with our compliance team to strengthen oversight and improve transparency. It was a technically demanding structure, but the result was a framework that gives the family confidence and ensures the beneficiary will always be cared for with dignity and security.
How can trustees successfully rebalance a portfolio from real estate into financial assets while maintaining diversification and efficiency?
Rebalancing from real estate into financial assets requires discipline, coordination, and a clear view of long-term objectives.
We recently managed the strategic reallocation of a trust portfolio heavily weighted in international property. This involved selling multiple real estate holdings and reinvesting the proceeds into diversified financial assets in line with the trust’s investment policy.
Working to tight timelines, we coordinated closely with brokers, legal counsel, and tax advisors to complete the transactions efficiently. The result was a more balanced and liquid portfolio, one that maintained diversification, improved oversight, and positioned the trust for sustainable growth.
In your clients’ own words, how would they describe your services?
Our clients often describe us as trusted partners; professionals who combine technical expertise with genuine care and consistency.
One of our long-standing clients in Hong Kong shared:
“Our company is based in Hong Kong and has been using Harneys Fiduciary services for over 40 years for both trust and corporate services. We highly appreciate the professional advice and the services provided by their excellent team. No doubt, our company will continue using Harneys Fiduciary services in every other matter.”
A Canadian client echoed this sentiment, highlighting our professional dedication over the years:
“Harneys Fiduciary has been retained by our family estate to provide trustee services for almost a decade… Our experience with Harneys Fiduciary is that they always stand out as extremely knowledgeable and adaptive… [giving] us the comfort and confidence that we know we are in safe hands for many years to come.”
These words reflect what drives us every day: building enduring relationships founded on trust, professionalism, and a genuine understanding of our clients’ goals.
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