The globe’s wealthiest families are reducing their holdings in U.S. dollar investments as international tensions and increasing government debt prompt a reassessment of investment strategies, according to a new UBS analysis released Thursday.
Nearly two-thirds of family offices polled by the Swiss financial institution anticipate that trust in the dollar as a primary reserve currency will decline throughout the coming year, the study revealed. The research took place from January through late March, prior to the dollar’s recent strong performance against other currencies.
Key findings from UBS’s Global Family Office Report 2026 include:
The currency’s decline during the year preceding the study led numerous family offices to examine their investment portfolios, with nearly half determining they held too much exposure to U.S. currency across various asset categories, noted UBS strategist Maximilian Kunkel.
Intentions to decrease holdings in dollar-based investments represent a broader reconsideration of U.S.-focused portfolios, UBS discovered. Family offices are planning to increase emerging market equities and infrastructure investments while reducing real estate positions.
“For the first time, we are feeling that family offices want to build up in Asia Pacific and, to a certain degree, also in Western Europe,” UBS executive Benjamin Cavalli said. “That mainly affects family offices outside the United States, but we are also seeing signs that a very limited part of the de-dollarisation move is coming from U.S. family offices.”
International conflicts have become the primary worry by a significant margin, leading family offices to combine investment allocation changes with multishoring approaches, UBS reported. Multishoring means establishing family office operations across multiple jurisdictions.
UBS conducted the survey among 307 clients globally. The participating families maintained an average net worth of $2.7 billion.
