Every advisor has that story.

The one where a family spent years building wealth, only to lose half of it. It was not because of markets, inflation, or overspending… but because of bad structuring.

And by “bad,” we don’t mean illegal or shady. We mean overly complicated, poorly coordinated, misaligned, or just not built for the real world.

The work we do at Sky Bridge makes us regularly see this getting played out across boardrooms and living rooms. It doesn’t always make headlines, but it leaves behind plenty of confusion. Unfortunately, there are often a few regret-filled emails that start with, “Can we undo this?”

Spoiler: sometimes yes. But often… no.

Let’s Start With a Simple Question:

What exactly is structuring?

At its core, structuring is how your wealth is organised:

• How it’s owned
• Where it’s held
• Who controls it
• How it’s taxed
• And how it moves (or doesn’t) between people, generations, or jurisdictions

When done well, you don’t even notice it. Things work. Transfers are smooth. Distributions are fair. The family stays intact.

When done badly, it feels like trying to play chess… on three boards… while blindfolded.

So, What Does “Bad” Structuring Look Like?

Let’s break it down in human and not legal terms.

• Multiple jurisdictions, no coordination
  A client sets up companies in the BVI, DIFC, and Mauritius—none of which “talk” to each other. The bank needs KYC from three lawyers, and the client’s accountant has started taking Fridays off.
• Overengineered documents
  A 72-page trust deed that even the trustees don’t fully understand. And when someone asks, “What happens if dad passes away next week?” everyone flips to a page that says… “refer to clause 14.6.2(b).”
• Underestimated regulation
  Someone thought a local nominee shareholder would solve a cross-border issue. It did until the nominee moved to a new country, taking your signature rights with him.
• DIY succession planning
  A family business split between three heirs—without a shareholders’ agreement, leadership plan, or even a WhatsApp group that doesn’t end in arguments.
• The “One Lawyer, One Banker” Model
  Great people. But they’ve never spoken to each other. Which means one sees the forest, and the other is somewhere in a different forest.

The Real Cost? It’s Not Just Money.

Yes, bad structuring can cost millions. But that’s only part of the story.

• Time lostin fixing things that should’ve been built right
• Family tension over unclear roles or broken expectations
• Legal disputes that drain energy, trust, and dignity
• Missed opportunities because capital got stuck behind paperwork
• Emotional stress—especially when mistakes come to light during a crisis

We've had clients bring us documents where no one could explain who actually had control over the holding company. And when someone tried to access the account, the bank flagged it as “dormant and under review.”
That was on a Thursday. The flight to Geneva was booked for Friday.

Why Does This Happen?

Strangely enough, most bad structuring doesn’t come from bad intent. It comes from:

• Speed over strategy: "We needed to set this up last week."
• Advice in silos: "My accountant said one thing, my lawyer said another."
• Legacy frameworks: "We’ve used the same format since the 90s."
• Family silence: "We never thought we’d need to explain the setup."

One family set up a beautiful European trust... then failed to update it after two kids moved to Canada. It worked perfectly—except in all the countries where their children actually lived.

What Good Structuring Looks Like

Not flashy. Not overbuilt. Just smart, clean, and built for how the family actually lives and operates.

• Aligned with lifestyle and residency
• Structured for flexibility and control—not control-freak levels of restriction
• Reviewed regularly (because life changes faster than tax codes)
• Clear governance roles—so there’s no mystery about who does what when someone isn’t around

Good structuring isn’t just about documents. It’s about decisions—made in rooms where everyone who matters has a seat.

A Real Fix We’ve Seen Work

One client had a patchwork of companies, trusts, and nominee agreements. They were mostly inherited from well-meaning advisors and “what everyone was doing in 2008.”

The family was expanding. The jurisdictions weren’t. And the governance? Let’s just say Excel was doing most of the work.

We restructured everything into two holding platforms. Simplified ownership. Rewrote documents in actual human language. Built in liquidity windows. Integrated philanthropic capital (which had been on the side for years). And finally, set up a governance board that included the next generation.

What changed?
Nothing dramatic—except now, everyone knew who was doing what, where things were, and how it would all move in the future.

It wasn’t louder. It was cleaner.

Final Word

Bad structuring doesn’t always look broken—until you try to use it. And by then, fixing it often comes with more pain, more cost, and more drama than anyone deserves.

So don’t wait for the mess. Ask the questions now:

• Does your structure reflect your life today?
• Do your advisors actually talk to each other?
• Could your family understand your setup without calling you?
• And if something happened tomorrow—would everything work like you think it would?

At Sky Bridge, we help clients turn complexity into clarity. We are not selling structures, but making sure they actually serve the family they’re built for.

Because when wealth is structured well, it doesn’t need to be explained. It just works.