All articles by Philip van Hilten

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Family Business Succession Planning: Why Next Generation Governance Matters

2 min read

Should We Really Make Plans for the Next Generation? Why every family must face the question and why postponing it is the most dangerous answer of all. Every family with assets,  a business, a house, a collection, a vineyard, knows, somewhere deep down, that one day there will be a change of hands. Yet very few prepare for that moment. The subject is uncomfortable. It forces people to think about death, power, love, rivalry, and the question no one dares to ask: “Who will come after me?” Most families avoid the topic until circumstances...

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Plans for the Next Generation, generation planning, inheritance, trust, trusts

How to Create a Family Transition Plan?

3 min read

How to Create a Family Transition Plan? It all starts with agreeing on who is family. Transitioning leadership or ownership to the next generation—whether in a family business, a foundation, or through estate planning—requires far more than legal and financial arrangements. It is first and foremost about people: relationships, values, trust, and timing. A clear understanding of who constitutes the family is the foundation of every successful transition plan. Without consensus on that question, even the most carefully drafted documents can...

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Family transition plan

How to Have, Hold and Protect My Art Collection? – The Dutch Art Fund Foundation

3 min read

For centuries, Dutch families have owned and protected collections of Dutch Masters. Many have done so successfully, safely, and with long-term continuity through a special legal vehicle under Dutch law: the foundation (stichting). Such an Art Fund Foundation can be created not only by Dutch families but also by collectors and investors worldwide. It allows them to own and preserve their art collections through “their” own foundation much in the same way as important Dutch collections such as those of Van Gogh and Rembrandt have been...

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next generation

How to Hold and Enjoy Family Assets – Now and for Generations?

3 min read

How to Hold and Enjoy Family Assets - Now and for Generations? Every family fortune begins with a single pair of hands. Sometimes those hands belong to one determined founder; sometimes to a couple who have built their life and their wealth together. At that first stage, there is no confusion about control: one vision, one will, one voice. But with time and with children, grandchildren, nephews and nieces that clarity fades. What was once a single owner becomes a crowd of co-owners. Each has a share, each has a voice, and each can block a...

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family assets, next generation, inheritance, moderator, counselor,

How to prepare the Next Generation “Papa, Mama, are we rich?”

2 min read

How to prepare the Next Generation “Papa, Mama, are we rich?” That is often the most frightening question a parent can hear. It opens a door that cannot easily be closed again. Once the truth is shared, it becomes clear that the next step is not about wealth itself, but about education about how to prepare the next generation to live with responsibility, self-awareness, and resilience. When a family owns a company, a collection, or a significant fortune, the challenge is not only to manage the assets, but to prepare those who will one day...

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next generation, education, inherit, succession, succession planning, philip van hilten
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