STEP establishes Private Banking & Wealth Management Group to demystify private wealth to government

STEP – The Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners - has established a Private Banking & Wealth Management Group to discuss how best to demystify the private wealth sector and explain its benefits to policymakers in government. The working group has the support of advisory firms and private banks keen to ensure that the value of private wealth is better understood in Westminster circles.

David Harvey, Chief Executive of STEP, said “The private wealth sector needs to have a united voice with government, and one which encourages growth for everyone’s benefit. It is vital that the government understands our sector brings with it a significant number of jobs, inward investment and tax revenues.

These discussions will thrash out how advisors, private banks and wealth managers can collectively improve the reputation of the private wealth sector and best represent the private client. This will build on STEP’s policy successes in recent years, and focus on assisting the government with tax, regulatory and competitiveness issues.”

The Private Banking & Wealth Management Group will discuss how to dovetail with the existing policy work STEP undertakes in a mutually beneficial partnership. The aim is to bring together the various corporations and institutions active in private wealth management to create a single voice to governments and other interlocutors on policy issues and a provide a more powerful footprint.

The partnership is a logical move for STEP, given the strong business links between advisors, private banks and wealth managers, and STEP’s substantial policy experience. The group is seeking members around the world, and has been spurred-on by the ever more demanding policy environment, including initiatives affecting the market and private clients such as FATCA and the RDR in the UK.

STEP already engages widely with policymakers in the UK, EU and the OECD, and a recent World Bank report encouraged policymakers to seek active partnership with STEP in order to ”help to ‘demystify’ the services and products” of the private wealth sector. STEP will also be representing its members at the global anti-money laundering summit hosted by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) in Milan on 5-6 December, where they will be discussing issues around collecting information on beneficial owners.