Julius Baer’s Family Barometer 2026, prepared for the first time with EY and reported on 20 October 2026, finds that very few ultra-wealthy business-owning families are ready to sell or hand over their company. Only 2.3% of advisers’ answers rated their client families fully prepared. The main obstacle, they say, is not tax but disagreement inside the family. These are advisers’ views, not families’ own answers.
Who Julius Baer and EY Surveyed
According to WealthBriefing and the South China Morning Post (SCMP), more than 700 financial professionals replied, including relationship managers, tax and legal specialists, wealth planners and family office staff. SCMP says they serve families worth at least CHF 50 million (about $60.7 million).
The report itself, as quoted in an independent analysis on the Substack newsletter The Alpha Dissection, speaks of more than 1,700 experts. That analysis says 1,789 were invited, over half of them Julius Baer staff, and 709 replied. The 2025 edition, done with PwC Switzerland, drew on nearly 2,500 experts, so year-on-year changes partly reflect a different panel.
What the 2.3% Figure Measures
Advisers rated how ready their business-owning clients are for a sale or transfer. According to WealthBriefing and OERLive: fully ready 2.3%, largely ready with minor gaps 12.0%, somewhat prepared 56.3%, not ready 29.5%. The four add up to about 100%, so each is a share of advisers’ answers, not a count of families.
SCMP’s headline says 66% of young heirs are not ready to take over; the text we could read does not explain that figure. WealthBriefing reports only 22.6% of heirs seen as fully ready.
Why Family Agreement Matters More Than Tax
A sale needs enough owners to say yes. When shares are spread among siblings and cousins, a few holdouts can stall a deal. According to WealthBriefing, 80% of respondents named a lack of family agreement as a limit on readiness, against 55.4% who named tax. Emotional attachment was the most common source of disagreement, at 60.6% globally, OERLive reports.
Among wider worries, SCMP reports, tax stays first and intergenerational wealth transfer rose one place to second, ahead of political stability. Succession planning was the top family priority in all four regions covered, WealthBriefing reports.
Jimmy Lee, Julius Baer’s Region Head Asia, quoted by WealthBriefing, said the best-prepared Asian families make succession “a shared strategic priority” well before any deal. Compare North American data where half of family offices lack a finished plan and how families prepare heirs.
What to watch
- Whether next year’s edition keeps EY and a similar panel, so comparisons are fair.
- Whether SCMP or the bank explains the 66% heirs figure.
- Whether other surveys, like the study of Indian business families, find the same readiness gap.
A fair caveat
These are advisers’ impressions, and by The Alpha Dissection’s count most invitees worked at Julius Baer or EY. Regional samples are small. We could not open the report, and press summaries sometimes disagree, for example on how many families give heirs an equal say.
Questions to bring to your advisors
If an offer for our company arrived tomorrow, would the family agree on whether to sell, and who decides? Do our heirs have a voice or a vote, and do they know which? These are questions to bring to your advisors, not advice.
