Latin America is becoming an increasingly profitable geography for Charles Russell Speechlys, a London-headquartered international law firm that focuses on private capital.

The shift to the political left in much of the region has sent scores of wealthy individuals searching for safe harbor, both for their assets and themselves.

“Wealth is skewed to a smallish percentage of the population, and that population is nervous,” said Robert Reymond, a Canadian lawyer who heads the firm’s Latin America desk.

“They’re nervous about their economy failing. They’re nervous about their currency tanking. They’re nervous about personal security. They’re nervous about governments, not everywhere, but in some countries, interfering with their assets,” he added.

“So the way to deal with that is to hold assets outside of their home country, which reduces domestic investment.”

Reymond joined Charles Russell Speechlys from Stikeman Elliott London in 2021, bringing with him extensive contacts and experience in Latin America.

He advises financial institutions and high-net-worth families on international wealth structuring, with a focus on tax, estate planning and the international regulatory environment.

Reymond also advises on political risk mitigation strategies for international and in-country assets.

Since his arrival at the firm, Charles Russell Speechlys has also recruited David Cordova, a Mexican tax lawyer based in Luxembourg, and Rafael Boccatto, a Brazilian lawyer based in London who focuses on private client matters.

All told, Charles Russell Speechlys now has 12 lawyers with a strong nexus to Latin America. And the firm is looking to recruit more, Reymond said.

“We will want to hire more people with a Latin America focus,” said Reymond, noting that the desk is “very busy.”
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Growing Market

Latin American economies have struggled to find their footing following the COVID-19 pandemic, which brought supply chain disruptions and inflation.

The World Bank projects that Latin American economies will expand by 1.9% in 2024, the lowest growth forecast for any region.

Meanwhile, a slew of leftist leaders have gained office in large economies like Brazil and Mexico, putting wealthy individuals from the region on edge. Efforts to raise taxes can sometimes be aggressive, while incentives to invest domestically diminish.

There is considerable wealth in Latin America, though it’s concentrated in a few hands.

According to data from Research and Markets, the Latin American wealth management market is worth $1.18 trillion and is projected to grow to $1.32 trillion by 2029. Wealthy families from Latin America are more likely to hold assets outside of their home countries than families from other regions.

According to research published this year by Citibank on trends among ultra-high-net-worth families, half of whom had more than $500 million in investable assets, 76% of families from Latin America store some of those assets in multiple countries.

That’s sharply higher than the global average for the super-wealthy, 53% of whom reported to Citibank that they keep assets outside of their home countries.

Wealthy Latin Americans also are more likely to have family members who reside outside of the region or hold multiple passports: 84% versus a global average of 44%, according to Citibank.

These trends translate into strong demand for cross-border tax, immigration and estate planning for wealthy individuals from Latin America.

A significant amount of this business funnels through Miami, where Reymond says he often travels for business. Miami has positioned itself as the epicenter for Latin American wealth management.

But Europe also is appealing to wealthy Latin Americans, especially those who wish to relocate.

“In the past, in most [Latin American] countries people would hold assets outside of their home country,” said Reymond, who has worked with Latin America since 1999. “More recently the trend is more for families to move.”

Wealthy Mexicans and Venezuelans might opt for a new domicile in Spain, for instance, while South Americans with Italian ancestry gravitate toward Italy.

European countries with tax regimes that welcome wealthy foreigners have varying rules, regulations and incentives that may require legal advice.

Italy, for instance, offers individuals who relocate to the country a flat tax of €200,000 a year on foreign income. That’s an attractive proposition for an individual who may be generating a 5% annual investment return on $100 million in assets.

Charles Russell Speechlys has a five-person team of Italian tax lawyers in London who have been busy helping wealthy individuals make the move to Italy, Reymond said.

In the U.K., meanwhile, the Labour Party has vowed to abolish the non-domestic tax regime, which allows some individuals to exclude tax on income earned outside the U.K.

That would make the U.K. a less attractive destination for wealthy individuals from regions such as Latin America.