Family Offices Replacing Banks in the Next Investment Cycle, Muratov Says

Investor and real estate developer Eldiyar Muratov said family offices will increasingly replace banks in the next market cycle, arguing that Hong Kong family offices and private syndicates can move faster than traditional institutions.

He said compliance-heavy bank processes often require months of paperwork, while ultra-high-net-worth investors can act swiftly and directly.

Muratov noted rising dealmaking in Dubai, Singapore and wider Asia, where two or three families pool capital without intermediaries.

He added that trust now drives capital flows more than formalities and that tokenisation, digital identity and blockchain will further expand private capital’s global reach.