Darren Allaway, you lead Goldman Sachs Apex across EMEA. How do you serve family offices across such a diverse region?

We are part of a $2 trillion global wealth business with teams in the Americas, EMEA and APAC. In EMEA,  Apex has people in London, Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Zurich, Paris, and Dubai, delivering investment opportunities and tailored solutions for the most sophisticated family offices. Our region is particularly diverse culturally and in terms of regulation, so we try to be as close to clients as possible.

Demand from companies and private equity sponsors for family office capital has grown significantly in recent years. As family offices have become more institutional and sophisticated, they have become increasingly relevant as both financial investors and strategic partners.

We’re seeing a lot of volatility at the moment. Your previous research showed that family offices remained remarkably consistent in their investment strategies. Is that still the case?

Yes. In that research, the median allocation to alternative investments among the family offices surveyed was around 42 percent. Based on what we are seeing, that may have increased slightly since then. It certainly has not decreased.

"Thematically, sports has become a significant area of interest, alongside AI and its supporting infrastructure."

The mix within alternatives has also remained relatively consistent. Interest in private credit continues. These are experienced institutional investors who can allocate across different themes within their alternatives portfolios, subject to their liquidity constraints.

If anything, appetite for private placements and M&A has increased. We are engaging with more family offices on a wider range of transactions. There is continued interest in direct investments, co-investments, and continuation vehicles. Within direct investments, emphasis is more on direct equity than direct debt.

Thematically, sports has become a significant area of interest, alongside AI and its supporting infrastructure. That also extends to the energy needed to power data centers and computing capacity.

Were you surprised by the scale of interest in sports investments?

Yes. I played professional basketball when I was younger, including in college, so I have a natural interest in sports and franchises.

In the U.S., the college athletics landscape has changed dramatically. Athletes are being paid, and conferences are looking to private equity for investment.

At the same time, European sports brands are attracting American capital, particularly in soccer. The NBA’s plans in Europe also illustrate how much is happening in this market.

Capital is moving in the other direction as well, with European and other EMEA-based family offices looking at opportunities in the U.S. and India. We could see this trend developing in the U.S., and it has certainly crossed the Atlantic. I cannot say I expected it to reach this scale.

But is sports actually a good business? Investors can lose a lot of money.

I’d rather not speak to individual valuations. But the recent sale of the Los Angeles Lakers for $12.5 billion  was a world record for a sports team and illustrates what is achievable at the top end of the market. 

The investment thesis is that many of these brands have not fully developed their commercial potential. They are also scarce.

Wrexham is an example of what can be achieved by taking a relatively obscure brand, adding media exposure, and bringing in professionals to develop the players, stadium, and business.

"Many continue to take a barbell approach, combining long-term investments with significant liquidity to pursue opportunities."

Combine that with people who understand media, and you have more than a compelling soccer story. You also have a media story, a marketing story, and sponsorship opportunities.

That cannot be replicated at every club. But scarcity and the perception of untapped commercial potential help explain the interest.

Family offices have also been holding substantial amounts of cash. Has that changed?

No. Many continue to take a barbell approach, combining long-term investments with significant liquidity to pursue opportunities.

They manage that liquidity in different ways. Some take a very conservative approach through Treasuries and Treasury bills. Others have brought a treasury function in-house, sometimes with their own family money market funds. Those arrangements can cover the operating company, the family office, and individual family members.

At current yields, however, more investors are asking whether they can build a robust portfolio of government and high-quality corporate bonds to generate attractive income over an intermediate horizon.

Dollar exposure also remains a topic of discussion, both in invested portfolios and in cash and treasury holdings. But the underlying barbell approach remains intact.

Are geopolitical conflicts driving a meaningful shift away from U.S. assets?

No, we are not seeing that. The U.S. remains a central investment destination because of the country’s unparalleled economic wealth, its human capital entrepreneurial environment, leadership in technology, and the size and depth of its capital market.

There was a period of greater discussion about Europe becoming a stronger challenge as an investment destination, partly in response to tariffs. But interest has not disappeared, particularly in defense.

However, the concentration of equity market leadership in U.S. technology has helped keep the U.S. at the center of investment activity.

U.S. investors are looking for opportunities in Europe. But with such a rich opportunity set at home, it can be challenging for them to deploy capital outside the U.S.

Read on the next page: How AI is revolutionizing the world of family offices, why the private equity market is separating the winners from the losers, and how Switzerland could benefit.