Indian Wealth Management in 2025: Insights from the Top Advisors Shaping the Future

Date: 12 Mar 2025

Karen Jones

Citywealth’s recent unveiling of the Top 30 Indian Advisers and Managers for 2025 highlights the ever-evolving landscape of wealth management in India.

From pre-IPO investments to offshore trusts and the potential reintroduction of estate duties

With insights from leading figures in private banking, tax planning, and estate management, the country’s high-net-worth individuals (HNIs) and ultra-high-net-worth individuals (UHNWIs) are navigating complex financial landscapes. From pre-IPO investments to offshore trusts and the potential reintroduction of estate duties, Indian wealth management is adapting rapidly. Here’s a look at some of the top trends and expert opinions shaping the future of wealth management in India, as tech in the country see’s wealth develop from Indian entrepreneurs both inside India and out

The Rise of India as a Prime Investment Destination

Himanshu Kohli, Co-Founder at Client Associates who is a lover of tennis and golf and has three decades in investment banking and private banking offered his view of the thriving Indian UHNW economy, “While previous years saw a significant migration of HNIs to developed countries for better living standards and tax considerations, India is now emerging as a prime investment destination, attracting businesses and investors seeking growth opportunities. With tax structuring, succession planning, and asset protection at the forefront, clients are prioritizing offshore trusts, Indian trust restructuring, and global diversification strategies, including investments in crypto, US markets, and alternate assets. As wealth preservation and expansion become more complex, strategic planning across jurisdictions is also proving essential to navigate evolving regulatory landscapes and to bolster returns. Client portfolios are increasingly shaped by key trends in Indian wealth management, with a strong focus on Pre-IPO investments, private credit, and alternative assets. Real estate is still a cornerstone, particularly in high-value commercial properties and luxury residences, influenced by relocation trends and favourable tax jurisdictions. High-net-worth individuals (HNIs) are also gravitating towards Single-Family Office (SFO) setups for enhanced control, transparency, and structured wealth management.”

Tax Strategies and Holistic Solutions in the Age of AI

Jairaj Purandare, the Founder Chairman of JMP Advisors, with three and a half decades of experience in tax and business advisory, offers his view. “With advancements in technology and AI, businesses will increasingly seek tailored tax solutions that address specific business needs. The role of tax consultants will shift from merely providing tax compliance services to delivering holistic tax strategies and innovative solutions. Consultants will focus on helping businesses with specialised and bespoke advice on long-term tax planning, cross-border tax strategies, Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) tax structuring and transfer pricing issues. Consulting firms will need to adopt a proactive advisory model rather than a reactive one.” JMP Advisors is a consulting and tax firm, based in Mumbai.

Estate Planning and Wealth Preservation: Balancing Onshore and Offshore

Aditi Sharma, Tax and Private Client Partner at Khaitan & Co, which is one of India’s oldest full-service law firms, founded in 1911, has a Masters in Law from Harvard Law School.  Khaitan & Co have 280 Partners and Counsel across eight offices in India and Singapore. Of the Indian market she says, “I am seeing the following as the top trends for 2025. Clients are undertaking planning, specifically, creating trusts prior to key milestones. Families and ‘promoters’, so those with controlling shareholdings, are looking at taking a public listing event as a clean slate to have discussions amongst family members to create a more flexible but tax compliant and efficient structure to enable the forthcoming wealth transfers. This is attractive for family-owned businesses and allows for better governance, ensuring smoother transitions across generations while addressing potential ownership disputes.”

Onshore and offshore tax planning strategies

Sharma continues, “Wealth preservation is also being structured both onshore and offshore. This combination of estate planning tools is proving useful for navigating both Indian laws and the tax and estate duty in offshore jurisdictions, where several wealthy Indian families, or at least the next generation of these families have chosen to both settle and expand their Indian family businesses. Together, they are a useful approach to cross-border wealth management.”

The Impact of Changing Laws on Wealth Management

Finally says Sharma, “There is planning in anticipation of new laws. The potential reintroduction of an estate duty in India in the medium to long term will only bolster the need for Indian families to plan their Indian and foreign estate and assets in a more sophisticated manner to be efficient in both jurisdictions. Though not in force today, mere discussions of a reintroduction of an estate duty become the first point from where families begin their planning. Further, changes to align personal succession laws, which are as on date, religion specific, have begun to appear in certain Indian states, with the potential to become the country-wide regime.”

Emerging Trends in Real Estate and Pre-IPO Investments

Shreya Rao, Founder of Shreya Rao & Associates, a boutique Indian law practice specialising in tax and private client law, who is also studying for her PhD at University of Oxford’s Faculty of Law and serial law firm entrepreneur, adds her view, “Global mobility related issues are becoming increasingly relevant for UHNI families and need to be considered from a regulatory, tax planning as well as flexibility perspective. Cross-border mobility can create tricky questions of conflict of laws, tax consequences and regulatory issues for the structures that families have. With families increasingly choosing to divide their time, wealth and future growth across multiple countries, these issues stand to be amplified. The private client industry in India is still at a nascent stage. The next 10 years are likely to see more regulation and maturity coming into the industry. For example, trustees in India have no licensing requirements today and it is only a matter of time before these requirements evolve. Clients are also becoming more sophisticated with their requirements as the economy evolves, and several are wealthier than ever before, which will increase the relevance and stakes at hand for private wealth advisors.”

Focus on diversifying investment portfolios, creating flexible family structures, and governance

As India’s wealth management sector grows, the role of strategic planning and forward-thinking advice becomes ever more critical. The focus on diversifying investment portfolios, creating flexible family structures, and enhancing governance is reshaping how high-net-worth families manage and protect their wealth. With the country poised to attract even more international investors, staying ahead of regulatory changes and adopting tailored financial strategies will be key to continued success in this rapidly changing landscape.

Click here to view the Citywealth Leaders List Top 30 Indian Advisors and Managers

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For context on the broader private wealth landscape, see our 2025 wealth trends.