Dr Patrick Maurenbrecher, CIO and Managing PartnerKontora distinguishes itself by moving away from the traditional, full-package, multi-family service model. It provides a personalised range of services rather than a one-size-fits-all model. This flexibility allows clients to choose financial services for their specific needs, ensuring that each investment strategy is as unique as the investors.
The firm operates through three specialised offices–the family office, the service office, and the investment office, serving high-net-worth families, institutional organisations, trusts and investors. Each division offers specialised services to meet distinct financial goals, from wealth optimisation to flexible asset management. This methodical yet adaptable approach sets a new benchmark for personalised financial services by catering to diverse customer needs.
We support our clients through education, teaching their kids about different asset classes, how to handle this money, and manage their wealth moving forward
Currently, Kontora oversees €13 billion in assets, including management, advisory, control and infrastructure services. This substantial portfolio represents the trust clients place in its expertise and its bespoke approach to wealth management. A commitment to personalised service continues to attract investors seeking strategic, long-term financial success.
Securing Family Legacies with Family Office
Led by Founder, Managing Partner and CEO Stephan Buchwald, Kontora’s Family Office has been offering integrated wealth management solutions to high-net-worth families, entrepreneurs, foundations, and institutional organisations for over 15 years. It specialises in strategic asset allocation, investment screening and comprehensive financial reporting of complex assets. With regulatory approvals in place to establish and administer funds, Kontora manages client wealth and ensures comprehensive oversight of their financial assets.
Clients seeking to align their financial governance with personal aspirations find a willing and adept partner in Kontora. The decision-making process typically involves a critical assessment—determining the balance between internal management and judicious outsourcing. This deliberation helps clients choose between a dedicated single-family office (SFO) or a more versatile hybrid setup combining internal control and external expertise.
This flexibility resonates especially well in today’s financial landscape, which is witnessing a surge in hybrid family offices. These setups allow investors to blend their financial acumen with Kontora’s robust external support to manage private debt funds and oversee investments. The firm also seamlessly integrates its offerings with the client’s existing structures, whether they prefer hands-on involvement in their financial affairs or to entrust them entirely to Kontora’s skilled team.
The challenge often extends beyond mere financial management. The Family Office frequently engages with high-net-worth families facing the task of educating the next generation about wealth management. Young heirs who grow up in affluence often lack a practical understanding of the magnitude of their family’s wealth.
“We support our clients through education, teaching their kids about different asset classes, how to handle this money, and manage their wealth moving forward,” says Dr Patrick Maurenbrecher, CIO and managing partner at Kontora.
This ensures that the baton of financial literacy and responsibility is passed to future generations, equipping them to navigate their prosperity with wisdom and foresight.
Ensuring Long-Term Financial Success
Under the leadership of Managing Partner and COO Florian Hoffmann, Kontora’s Service Office excels in wealth management by monitoring investments and handling myriad administrative tasks.
Kontora’s flexible service model allows clients to choose specific services, making outsourcing a cost-effective and prudent decision. Customisation has proven beneficial for a wide range of clients, including SFOs, public organisations, ecclesiastical institutions, and foundations. By leveraging Kontora’s proficiency in accounting and wealth management software, clients optimise their financial operations, concentrating more on their core competencies.
Kontora’s Investment Office, led by Maurenbrecher, delivers top-tier, tailored investment opportunities across various asset classes and investment periods. Catering to diverse needs, whether it’s wealth expansion or portfolio diversification, the investment office opens doors to exclusive opportunities, including coveted private equity projects, venture capital initiatives, and international real estate investments that are typically out of reach for most investors.
Kontora’s long-term engagement with a trust illustrates its transformative impact on financial outcomes. It helped the client transition from a conservative investment approach— yielding one to two per cent annually—to an endowment model consisting of diversified assets like private equity, real estate, venture capital, and private debt. As a result of this diversification and restructuring, the annual yield surged to over eight per cent, enabling the trust to allocate six times more funds towards charitable causes.
A client-centric engagement model focuses on strategic foresight and personalised interaction that supports the long-term partnerships needed to deliver these services successfully.
From the onset, a structured approach is taken to understand each client’s financial ambitions and constraints. Through detailed discussions, the experts tailor services. Reference calls and direct engagement with its team enable clients to conduct due diligence, improving transparency and fostering trust.
“When clients choose us as their wealth manager, they’re looking for a commitment that spans generations. They must understand both what we offer and what limits us. While thorough understanding takes time, this dedication to clarity fosters long-term partnerships and substantial financial gains,” states Maurenbrecher.
A Journey of Adaptability and Growth
Kontora’s evolution over the past 17 years has been driven by its commitment to adapting to client needs to deliver exceptional services. Its journey began in Hamburg as a multi-family office, where founders Buchwald and Berndt Otternberg launched what was then a novel concept in Germany. It was a comprehensive family office service modelled after the endowment investment approach, which consisted of diversifying across varied asset classes.
As a bootstrap company, the cornerstone of its growth has been the trust and confidence it instils in its clientele, fostered by its reputation and expertise. Originally, Kontora functioned as an outsourced solution for clients needing specific services, gradually expanding its scope in response to their growing demands. This evolution from a niche service provider to a comprehensive wealth management platform exemplifies how Kontora has meticulously scaled its operations alongside client needs.
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When clients choose us as their wealth manager, they’re looking for a commitment that spans generations. They must understand both what we offer and what limits us. While thorough understanding takes time, this dedication to clarity fosters long-term partnerships and substantial financial gains
The entrepreneurial spirit of the founding team enabled them to engage clients from a business owner’s perspective, creating a unique peer-to-peer dynamic. This resonated particularly well with entrepreneurial families who valued unbiased, personalised wealth management solutions. As client demands broadened, so did its services, evolving into a comprehensive wealth management platform equipped to meet diverse financial needs.
Today, Kontora stands out with its specialised offices designed to cater to distinct client profiles, continuously innovating and aligning its services with the entrepreneurial ethos it champions. A crucial factor in the success has been its team. While the chief executives passionately run the firm, dedicated employees are the ones who genuinely make customers happy. That synergy represents its commitment to customer success and satisfaction.
The evolution from a multi-family office to a leading wealth management firm is remarkable. In an industry where flexibility and personalisation are the ultimate luxury, Kontora’s customised services raise the benchmarks of modern wealth management standards, paving the way for a future synonymous with limitless financial opportunity.
