Chung Yin O, Regional Director of Legal and Operations at Cone Marshall Group, took to the stage during the “In the Hubbis Hot Seat” session at the Hubbis Wealth Planning and Structuring Forum in Singapore to set out why ultra-high-net-worth families require more than standard corporate administration when structuring, protecting and transferring wealth. Speaking to an audience of private bankers, advisers and family office professionals, he positioned Cone Marshall Group as a legally rooted, globally licensed and independent trust specialist built around long-term stewardship rather than transactional service.
From Legal Roots to Global Reach
Yin O opened by framing the central challenge facing wealth creators. Building significant wealth, he said, is only part of the task. The greater challenge is protecting it, sustaining it and transferring it across generations without allowing complexity, disputes or regulatory change to erode its value.
“Creating wealth is only half the battle,” he said. “The true challenge is protecting it, sustaining it and passing it on across generations.”
That challenge, he explained, sits at the core of Cone Marshall Group’s purpose. The firm’s origins are not in corporate administration or financial services, but in a New Zealand law practice. That legal foundation, he argued, continues to shape the way the group designs and manages trust structures today.
“Our story began in New Zealand, rooted in the absolute precision of a law firm,” he said. “We evolved from a legal practice into an international trust specialist, but we never lost our DNA.”
For Yin O, that distinction is not cosmetic. Trusts are legal instruments, and their effectiveness depends on the quality of the thinking behind them. Design, enforceability, resilience under challenge and adaptability to changing regulation all require more than administrative execution. They require legal discipline.
He noted that the vast majority of Cone Marshall Group’s staff are lawyers rather than conventional administrators, allowing the firm to approach trust structuring through what he described as “the sharp analytical lens of legal experts”. The result, he argued, is not simply wealth administration, but risk management, regulatory foresight and structurally robust planning.
A Global Platform, Including A Rare Wyoming Capability
From its New Zealand base, Cone Marshall Group has built a deliberately international footprint. Yin O highlighted the firm’s 13 trust licences worldwide, covering jurisdictions including Singapore, the British Virgin Islands and New Zealand.
“Whether your strategy requires the robust regulatory environment in Singapore, the agility of the British Virgin Islands, or the time-tested stability of New Zealand, we are there on the ground,” he said.
The jurisdiction he emphasised most strongly, however, was Wyoming. Cone Marshall Group operates a fully licensed trust company in the US state, which Yin O described as a rare capability among international trust providers. Wyoming, he said, offers powerful asset protection, strong privacy provisions and modern trust legislation that can be highly relevant for globally mobile families.
“Finding a truly international trust group with a footprint in Wyoming is incredibly rare,” he said. “By bridging the gap between global structures and US tax law, we give ultra-high-net-worth families an unparalleled competitive edge.”
The point was particularly relevant for families with US-connected assets, beneficiaries or business interests. Many international structures struggle when US considerations enter the picture. Yin O’s argument was that Cone Marshall Group’s Wyoming capability is not an incidental add-on, but a genuine differentiator: a way to connect US trust planning with broader international structuring.
Independence As A Fiduciary Advantage
Yin O then turned to what he described as one of Cone Marshall Group’s most important structural advantages: its independence. The group is privately owned by its founder, who remains actively involved in the firm and its client relationships. It has no external shareholders, no private equity backers and no institutional parent.
“We have no external shareholders demanding short-term profits,” he said. “We have no conflict of interest trying to sell our clients financial products or manage their assets for a fee. Our only loyalty is to our clients.”
He argued that this ownership model creates practical advantages for ultra-high-net-worth families. It supports confidentiality, avoids product-driven conflicts and allows the firm to focus on bespoke structuring rather than standardised institutional service models.
“Our timeline is not the next fiscal quarter,” he said. “It is the next century.”
That long-term horizon is central to the trust business. Structures established today may need to function for decades, often across multiple generations, jurisdictions and family branches. Yin O’s point was that a trust company built around short-term commercial pressure may struggle to provide the continuity and independence required for that role.
For Cone Marshall Group, he suggested, private ownership is not simply a governance detail. It is part of the firm’s value proposition: an alignment mechanism that allows the group to focus on client outcomes over institutional incentives.
Legal Precision Over Administrative Scale
Throughout the session, Yin O returned to a consistent theme: legal precision matters more than administrative volume. While many trust companies compete on scale, operational efficiency or jurisdictional breadth, he framed Cone Marshall Group’s proposition around legal expertise, independence and deeply personalised client relationships.
That positioning reflects the realities facing wealthy families today. Cross-border regulation is becoming more complex, geopolitical risk is rising, and family wealth structures are being tested by tax scrutiny, succession challenges and beneficiary expectations. In that environment, Yin O argued, advisers cannot afford to be merely reactive.
“Ultra-high-net-worth deserves more than standard corporate administration,” he said. “It demands global agility, legal expertise and independence.”
For intermediaries advising complex families, the message was clear. Trust structuring is no longer a static exercise in documentation and jurisdictional selection. It requires ongoing judgement, legal adaptability and a clear understanding of how family, tax, regulatory and asset protection issues intersect.
An Invitation To Build For The Long Term
Yin O closed by inviting advisers and intermediaries to engage with Cone Marshall Group where clients are seeking structures capable of enduring across generations. He returned to the language of legacy, positioning the firm as a partner for families navigating regulatory complexity, geopolitical uncertainty and the inherent fragility of intergenerational wealth transfer.
“With 13 licences, a rare American stronghold in Wyoming, and the brilliant minds of legal professionals guiding every decision, we are the architects of our clients’ legacy,” he said.
His final message was direct: for families ready to secure wealth beyond the current generation, Cone Marshall Group is prepared to help design the structures required.
“If you or your clients are ready to secure an empire for generations yet unborn, let’s build that together,” he said.