Dubai: The Julius Baer Family Barometer examines the priorities and challenges facing ultra-high-net-worth (UHNW) families, with this year’s report focusing on one of the most significant moments in a family’s history: the sale or transfer of a family business.
Globally, family businesses remain the principal source of wealth for UHNW families, with more than four in five holding 50 per cent or more of their operating company. Yet the report identifies a significant readiness gap: only 2.3 per cent of families are considered fully ready for a sale or transfer, while 12.0 per cent are largely ready with minor gaps.
Worldwide, lack of family alignment on a sale is the most frequently cited factor limiting readiness, ahead of tax considerations, governance and legal structures.
Readiness in line with global peers
In the Middle East, readiness broadly tracks the global average. A total of 3.3 per cent of business-owning families are considered fully ready for a transition and 11.7 per cent largely ready with minor gaps, while 26.7 per cent are not ready to transfer, compared with 29.5 per cent globally. The majority (58.3 per cent) remain only somewhat prepared, indicating that the gap between intention and readiness is as relevant in the region as it is elsewhere.
When families in the region consider an exit, valuation expectations are the most frequently cited source of misalignment (60.0 per cent), ahead of emotional attachment (56.7 per cent) and disagreement about the future of the business (55.0 per cent). Globally, by contrast, emotional attachment tops the list (60.6 per cent).
Keeping governance within the family
Family governance ranks among the region’s top three family priorities, one of the most significant differences from the global results, alongside succession planning, which ranks first in every region. This emphasis carries through to life after an exit. Families in the Middle East are more likely to establish a family-only investment committee to oversee their wealth following a sale (33.3 per cent versus 24.3 per cent globally), and less likely to make investment decisions on an ad hoc basis without formal governance (18.3 per cent versus 26.7 per cent globally).
When planning the implementation of a post-sale strategy, 16.7 per cent of Middle East families involve the next generation actively with an equal say, compared with 12.3 per cent globally, and a further 45.0 per cent consult them without giving them a vote. Together, this represents the highest level of next-generation involvement across all regions, and none of the region’s respondents reported families excluding successors from these discussions altogether.
After an exit, families in the Middle East and Asia place greater weight on long-term growth, while preserving wealth ranks highest in Europe and Latin America.
Jean Pierre Dib, Co-Head Middle East & Africa, Julius Baer, said: “Family businesses are the foundation of wealth in the Middle East and in a year of heightened regional uncertainty, succession has moved to the centre of our conversations with clients, many of whom are planning across several generations and jurisdictions at once. What we consistently see is that the families who navigate these transitions with confidence are those who have put governance in place early, agreeing how decisions will be made and involving successors well before any handover takes place. Equally important is equipping the next generation with the skills, experience and confidence to take on the responsibilities of ownership and leadership when the time comes. For Julius Baer, supporting families through succession remains central to our long-standing commitment to the region.”
Geopolitics shaping regional priorities
Political stability ranks as the leading societal concern in the Middle East, while personal safety has entered the region’s top three for the first time. Intergenerational wealth transfer ranks second, a topic that has risen in importance in both the Middle East and Europe this year.
On the investment side, geopolitical diversification leads the agenda in the region, as it does globally. Real estate investing ranks second in the Middle East, compared with third globally, reflecting its role as a strong complement to diversification, valued for its tangibility and long-term stability. Inflation protection completes the top three.
The Family Barometer, published by Julius Baer and EY, is based on a survey answered by over 700 financial professionals, including experts from Julius Baer and EY as well as independent third-party professionals. Respondents advise UHNW clients across Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Latin America.
To download the Julius Baer Family Barometer 2026, please visit here: