Referral platform for succession solutions · Switzerland
Nordiq is a platform of three differently positioned wealth managers and takes no part in the succession process itself. The platform routes owners and portfolio managers to the firm that fits their book. Review, negotiation, contract and transfer then sit with that firm and with you.
Two routes are open: a full sale, or a book transfer in which the owner and the relationship managers stay on a commission basis and only the regulatory entity changes. In both cases the client keeps the person they know.
01
Situation
Three observations from conversations with owners of small and mid-sized wealth managers in Switzerland and Liechtenstein.
01
Supervisory organisation, audit, compliance mandate, AML reviews, transaction monitoring, suitability documentation, regulatory reporting. This work grows every year and barely depends on the size of the book. The owner is managing director, compliance officer and relationship manager at once, and client work comes last in that queue.
02
Licence, platform, external audits, legal advice on every rule change. The effort barely depends on assets under management. Below a certain threshold the firm works for its structure rather than for its clients.
03
There is no internal successor with capital, and suitable buyers are rare. Selling to a firm with a different investment philosophy costs clients. Nobody who built relationships over 25 years wants to watch them leave in the first year after closing.
02
Two routes
Both routes take the regulatory work off your desk. They differ in how long you stay with the client and how you are paid. Both are run by the receiving firm; Nordiq only makes the introduction.
2 to 9 months
Duration of a structured sale process from first conversation to closing. A single mandate is integrated quickly, larger firms take longer.
Route 1
A structured sale to an acquirer from our circle whose investment philosophy and client profile match your book. Fit is examined before the price is negotiated, not after.
Route 2
The book moves into the regulatory entity of a firm from our circle. You and your key relationship managers stay with the client on a commission basis. Licence, supervisory organisation, audit, compliance and AML pass to that entity in full.
The routes combine: a partial sale now, the commission model for the transition years, a full exit on an agreed date.
03
What stays
A transfer the client only notices at the custodian is a transfer done properly.
The manager who has served the client for years stays their manager. No allocation to a team, no handover after closing.
Locations and languages remain. Client meetings take place where they took place before.
Existing mandates are not forced into a house model. Changes happen only where the manager argues for them on the merits.
Onboarding, AML checks, transaction monitoring, suitability, reporting and regulatory filings run on a largely automated platform. That lowers cost per mandate and is the reason a high share of commission can stay with the manager.
04
The platform
Nordiq is the joint platform of three wealth managers with different profiles: different investment styles, different client segments, different regions. Nordiq does not buy, does not advise and does not negotiate. It assigns each enquiry to the firm that fits.
Because the three firms differ, your profile decides who holds the conversation. That is why we ask for the short form first: size, client structure and investment focus are enough to route you to the right firm.
Admission to the platform requires licence status, audit reports, five years of book development and references from earlier acquisitions. After that the platform's role ends with the referral: review, price, contract and transfer are agreed directly with the firm.
05
Process
The platform handles the first two steps. After that the process sits with you and the assigned firm; Nordiq is no longer involved.
01 · 2 minutes
You state the size of the book, the client structure, your investment focus and your time horizon. That is all the platform needs to match you.
02 · 1 working day
A short call of about 15 minutes settles which of the three firms fits your book. The platform then hands your contact to that firm, and its task is done.
03 · 2 to 3 weeks
The firm reviews revenue, cost structure, book quality and regulatory standing. Confidential, under a non-disclosure agreement between you and the firm.
04 · 1 to 3 quarters
Offer, contract, client notification, custody transfer, regulatory filings. Negotiated and closed between you and the firm, without Nordiq.
Option 1
Full sale
Option 2
Carry on as today
Recommendation
Book transfer with commission
Illustrative figures. Your memo carries your figures.
06
Confidentiality
We speak with owners whose staff and clients know nothing of a possible sale. The platform passes on your name only once you release the match. Without that release, none of the three firms learns that you enquired.
Figures and documents stay outside the platform. Bands for structure and revenue are enough to match you, and client names are never needed. Everything beyond that you exchange directly with the assigned firm.
Assessment
Two minutes of form, then a short call to settle the match. The conversation itself is held by the firm, not by the platform.
Six questions, two minutes. You propose three time windows or ask for a call back.