Abu Dhabi is fast becoming a home for family capital, drawing wealth from the Gulf, Asia and the West. Younger generations are looking beyond stocks and property toward private equity, digital assets and new technology. Lixia Zhu, Principal of 76Columbus, explains how her second generation family office decides where to invest and why the family relocated to the UAE after living in the United States for 15 years. She also describes a private network built for next generation principals across the GCC and Asia, and the shared values that connect wealthy families in both regions.
Get the latest news and updates on FINTECH.TV
Why Family Offices From Asia and the Gulf Are Choosing Abu Dhabi for the Long Term
Tell us more about 76Columbus.
76Columbus is our own family investment vehicle. We have a presence both in New York and here in Abu Dhabi. We invest in both the public and private sectors. In the private sector we tend to hold alternative investments across investment funds, and real estate as well. When it comes to industry, we lean toward the fintech space, including digital assets.
You are a second generation family office, and you are moving beyond the way the family originally made its wealth. How do you decide where to invest and what to diversify into?
We look at investments from two perspectives. The first is asset allocation and portfolio construction, where we balance time horizon, risk adjusted returns, liquidity and diversification. That helps us decide the proportion between public and private, and within private, how we balance funds against some direct investments. The second is the industry standpoint, where my background comes from: fintech and banking, back on Wall Street for many years. That helps us invest in a way that goes beyond capital, because we can add value by providing domain expertise and industry insights.
Why was Abu Dhabi so attractive?
I lived in the US for the last 15 years and I am originally from Asia. About two and a half years ago we decided to look at other markets to relocate to, and we picked Abu Dhabi and the UAE. I look at this region in three ways. First, the collaboration between the public and private sectors is really eye opening, with some public bodies structured like private sector companies. Second, wherever we go we look at the regulators and the legal framework, and in the UAE the framework for what we want to invest in is quite clear and structured. Third, before we made the move I went to different areas globally to see what was on the ground. From those first hand conversations, Abu Dhabi and the UAE appeared much more long term and family oriented. I can see a family being here for the long term, establishing itself in this region beyond just investment.
You have set up a new age family office investment council that brings together families from Asia and across the GCC. Tell us about its work.
It is a private family investment network, mainly for knowledge sharing. For our next generation principals across the GCC, Asia and globally, it is a safe place for peer exchange of investment knowledge, and we can also learn from experts.
Anything to add on why families from both regions connect?
When families look from the outside in, they often see this region as oil capital. When they step on the land, it is the land of opportunities, investable opportunities way beyond traditional oil and gas: infrastructure, real estate, technology, finance and fintech. The other point is the narrative around families in this region and in Asia. Wealth is often two or three generations old, with wealth founded in the first generation, so the next generations share a similar cultural situation. We think about wealth beyond preservation, about the next generation's mission, about governance for siblings and cousins, and about investment allocations across different families, and earning our place to be the family, not just inheriting it. Those three elements are critical, and they show the similarities between the two regions.