FAMILY OFFICE TAX AWARE INVESTING

Why It Matters

PPLI enables ultra‑high‑net‑worth families to capture significant after‑tax returns, reshaping wealth preservation and creating a new growth frontier for investment managers.

Key Takeaways

• Tax-aware investing uses life‑insurance structures to eliminate income tax.
• Private Placement Life Insurance (PPLI) offers tax‑free growth for high‑net‑worth families.
• Fees are ~50 bps versus 400‑500 bps tax on private‑credit returns.
• AQR raised ~$100B in tax‑aware funds, deploying $3B monthly.
• Family offices increasingly demand PPLI for structural alpha and estate planning.

Summary

The video explores tax‑aware investing, focusing on Private Placement Life Insurance (PPLI) as a vehicle that transforms investment accounts into tax‑exempt life‑insurance policies. Host Ron introduces Michael Leapkin, a veteran of the PPLI space, to explain how the product sits at the intersection of income‑tax planning, estate planning, and investment management. Key insights include the dramatic tax advantage: a typical private‑credit investment taxed at 400‑500 basis points can be reduced to roughly 50 basis points in fees when wrapped in a PPLI structure. AQR’s success—nearly $100 billion raised in tax‑aware funds with $3 billion deployed monthly—illustrates growing institutional adoption, while family offices ranging from $250 million to $30 billion in assets are increasingly demanding these solutions. Notable quotes underscore the mindset shift: “The only relevant metric is after‑tax return,” and Leapkin’s value‑prop statement: “Pay 50 bps in fees versus 400‑500 bps in income tax.” He also details the evolution from a niche product with limited investment options to today’s robust marketplace of dedicated insurance funds and customizable mandates. The implications are clear: UHNW families can achieve structural alpha and preserve wealth across generations, while investment managers must adapt to offer PPLI‑compatible strategies. As tax‑efficiency becomes a core performance driver, the market for PPLI and related tax‑aware products is poised for rapid expansion.

Original Description

Tax efficiency shapes outcomes in ways that compound quietly and powerfully over time. For Family Offices managing complex, multi-generational capital, investment decisions extend beyond returns and into structure, jurisdiction, and long-term planning discipline.

Hosted by Ron Diamond, Chairman and CEO of Diamond Wealth, this session features a live discussion with Michael Liebeskind and Aidan Elliott of Golconda Partners, two specialists in designing and implementing tax-aware investment structures for ultra-wealthy families.

Michael brings decades of experience building and advising large-scale insurance and investment platforms, including structures supporting tens of billions in assets. Aidan leads client strategy and works directly with some of the world’s most sophisticated families on multi-generational planning, with a focus on Private Placement Life Insurance and annuity-based investment solutions.

Together with Ron, they will engage in a focused conversation on how Family Offices approach tax-aware investing in practice, including the structural decisions, trade-offs, and long-term considerations that shape outcomes.

Attendees will gain perspective on:

• The role of tax-aware investing in long-term capital preservation

• Structural approaches used by leading Family Offices

• Considerations when integrating insurance-based investment strategies

• How to align investment decisions with estate and generational planning goals

Designed for Family Office executives, advisors, and allocators, this discussion reflects the level of rigor required to manage capital with precision and long-term intent.