Alternatives now outweigh traditional assets in family office portfolios, BNY Wealth finds
BNY Wealth's 2026 study of 290 family offices, reported on 13 October 2026, finds that less than half of portfolios now sit in public equity and real estate. The definition of 'alternatives' and a larger sample both matter when reading the headline.
On 13 October 2026, Spear’s reported new research from BNY Wealth, the private banking arm of the Bank of New York, showing that family offices now hold less than half of their portfolios in traditional assets such as public equity and real estate. BNY says this is the first time its survey has recorded that result. ThinkAdvisor covered the same study the following day and put the allocation to alternatives at 60%, up 12 percentage points on a year earlier.
The figures below come from those two reports. We have not seen BNY’s full 2026 report.
Who was surveyed
BNY Wealth surveyed 290 family offices internationally, with assets under management from $250 million to more than $5 billion. According to Spear’s, about half were in the United States. Ten per cent manage more than $5 billion and 36% between $1 billion and $4.9 billion.
That mix is larger than last year’s. The 2025 edition, run with the Harris Poll, covered 282 single family offices, of which 10% managed more than $5 billion and 24% between $1 billion and $4.9 billion, according to Chief Investment Officer. The share of $1 billion-plus offices in the sample has therefore risen from about a third to almost half.
What counts as an alternative
BNY’s definition is wide. It includes private equity, venture capital and private credit, and also cryptocurrency and luxury assets such as art and jewellery. Real estate sits on the traditional side.
Chuck Long, BNY Wealth’s head of international markets and family office, told Spear’s that much of the private market exposure is a bet on artificial intelligence. The four most popular investment categories in the study were AI, renewable energy, healthcare and conventional energy. ThinkAdvisor reports that 40% of respondents are actively exploring AI, and that the theme is driving interest in venture capital and in the infrastructure the technology needs.
Long also said art investment in the study rose 63% year on year, and linked the interest in luxury assets and sports stakes partly to younger family members. Private credit remained popular despite well-publicised problems at some managers. Spear’s cites Blue Owl Capital, which capped quarterly withdrawals from one fund at 5%.
Long’s explanation for the appetite was time horizon. Family offices, he said, invest over longer periods than other wealthy clients and can accept more illiquidity.
What it means for family offices
A portfolio that is 60% illiquid or hard to value needs different plumbing from one built on listed securities. Valuation policy, performance reporting across private funds, and the liquidity to meet capital calls, tax bills and distributions to family members all take more work once that threshold is crossed. BNY’s own 2025 study found family offices outsourcing performance measurement for exactly this reason.
Two cautions apply to the headline figure. The sample this year leans towards larger offices, which tend to hold more private assets, so part of the year-on-year rise may reflect who answered rather than what changed. And because BNY counts crypto, art and jewellery as alternatives, its 60% is not directly comparable with surveys that use a narrower definition. Families benchmarking their own allocation should check which assets each report includes before drawing conclusions.
Sources: Spear’s, 13 October 2026; ThinkAdvisor, 14 October 2026; Chief Investment Officer, 12 June 2025.