American billionaire Ray Dalio to open Singapore family office

Asian family offices have surpassed global peers due to Chinese stocks.

American billionaire Ray Dalio, founder of asset management firm Bridgewater Associates, is opening his family office in Singapore to run his investments and philanthropy throughout the region, reports Bloomberg.

Dalio has long ties to Asia and the Lion City and felt it was “high time” to open a family office here, a spokesperson said.

With a net worth of more than $20b (US$15b), Dalio is the latest uber-wealthy business leader to open a family office in Singapore. In 2019, James Dyson’s Weybourne Group ramped up hiring whilst Shu Ping, one of the billionaires behind Haidilao International Holding — the world’s biggest chain of Chinese hotpot restaurants — opened Sunrise Capital Management in the city.

Family offices in Asia have outperformed their global peers thanks to their bigger exposure to Chinese stocks and tech companies, according to UBS Group.

The wealth they control and the jobs they offer are the main reasons why the Singaporean government has been keen to attract more to the city state through tax incentives and the Global Investor Program, which gives the super-rich a pathway to permanent residence. About 200 single-family offices are estimated to be managing assets worth about $26.8b (US$20b) in the city.

Here’s more from Bloomberg. 

Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.