Trust & Business Structuring - AS Brokers

Trust & Business Structuring

Protect What You've Built. Pass It On Properly.

This Page Is Not For Someone Starting Out

It is for people who have already created wealth—business owners, professionals, and families with estates above R7 million—who now want to protect it, structure it correctly, and pass it on efficiently.

If your estate is approaching or exceeds R7 million, this conversation matters.

If Nothing Is Done, The Default Outcome Is Predictable:

Estate duty erosion
Executor's fees and administration costs
Capital gains tax on death
Family conflict over assets
Assets exposed to business and personal risk
Trust and business structuring exists to prevent this.

Who This Is For

Business owners with retained profits or valuable operating companies
Families with growing estates (R7 million and above)
Individuals concerned about estate duty, liquidity, and succession
People who want assets outside their personal estate
Those thinking beyond their lifetime—children, grandchildren, legacy
If your goal is generational wealth, structure matters more than returns.

The Real Problem With Owning Everything Personally

Most people build wealth in the most exposed way possible. Everything is held in their own name, tied directly to personal risk, with no separation between growth assets and lifestyle assets.

The Typical Exposure Pattern:

Assets held in their own name
Businesses tied directly to personal risk
No separation between growth assets and lifestyle assets
No liquidity planning at death

This Creates Three Major Risks:

1.Estate erosion through taxes and fees
2.Asset loss through liquidation or sequestration
3.Forced sales when cash is needed at death

Good structuring fixes all three.

Proper structuring is not about hiding money.
It is about owning assets in the right place.

What Trust & Business Structuring Actually Does

A correctly implemented structure can deliver outcomes that personal ownership never will:
Move growth assets outside your estate
Reduce estate duty and executor's fees
Ring-fence assets from business and personal risk
Separate control from ownership
Create continuity if something happens to you
Allow wealth to grow for future generations
This is how wealthy families think. It's not aggressive. It's intentional.

Trusts: Used Correctly, They Are Extremely Powerful

A trust is not a tax dodge. Used properly, it is a long-term ownership vehicle that can protect and grow wealth across generations.

Trusts Are Typically Used To:

Hold investments and growth assets
Receive loans rather than donations (avoiding donations tax)
Protect assets from creditors and business risk
Accumulate wealth for children and grandchildren
Keep assets intact across generations
The key is how the trust is funded and managed. This is where most mistakes happen. Poorly structured trusts create tax problems, compliance issues, and legal exposure.

Business Structuring: Separating Risk From Wealth

Your operating business should not be where your wealth lives. Trading risk and asset accumulation need to be separated.

We focus on:

Separating trading risk from asset ownership
Structuring loan accounts correctly to avoid estate and tax traps
Aligning shareholder, partnership, and succession planning
Preventing chaos on death, disability, or exit
Making sure profits flow efficiently, not accidentally
A good structure allows your business to operate—without putting your life's work at risk.

Tax Efficiency vs Tax Effectiveness

There is a big difference between the two—and most people focus on the wrong one.

Tax Efficiency

Paying the least tax legally today. Short-term focused. Often aggressive. Can create problems later.

Tax Effectiveness

Designing a structure that still works in 10, 20, and 30 years. Long-term focused. Sustainable. Built to last.

We focus on long-term outcomes, not short-term tricks.

This includes:

Estate duty planning
Capital gains positioning
Donations planning over time
Income flow planning
Succession and liquidity at death

Protection Against Life's Real Risks

Life happens. Your structure must work if things go wrong.

Your structure must work if:

You are liquidated
You are sequestrated
You become disabled
You pass away unexpectedly
Your family dynamics change
Structuring is not about optimism. It's about resilience.
Good structuring is quiet. It doesn't shout.
But it changes outcomes—permanently.

A Simple Reality Most People Miss

R1 Million+

For an estate of R7 million and above, just two things done properly—a correctly structured trust and a properly drafted will—can easily save an estate R1 million or more.

That Money Does Not Disappear In:

Estate duty (20% on the dutiable estate above the R3.5m abatement; 25% above R30m)
Executor's fees (3.5% + VAT on gross estate value)
Unnecessary capital gains tax
Administrative leakage and delays

Instead, It Goes Where It Was Always Meant To Go:

Your children
Your grandchildren
Your family's future
Without proper structuring, that same money often ends up with the Receiver of Revenue and service providers, never to be recovered.

This is not about complexity. It is about making sure what you built benefits your bloodline—not the system.

How We Approach This at AS Brokers

We don't sell trusts as products. We design structures that fit your reality.

Our Role Is To:

Understand your assets, businesses, and family situation
Identify risks and inefficiencies in your current structure
Work alongside your accountant and legal advisors
Ensure structures are compliant, practical, and sustainable
Align everything with your estate and succession plan
The goal is simple: What you built should benefit your family—not the state.
If you've spent decades building wealth,
it deserves more than a generic will and hope.
Good structuring changes outcomes—permanently.

Ready to Review Your Structure?

If your estate is approaching or exceeds R7 million, or you own a business and want clarity on risk, tax, and succession—let's review your current structure and identify where improvements can be made.

This is not about selling you something new. It's about fixing what already exists—before it's too late.

Fill Out The Form Below

Speak to Specialists Who Understand Structuring

Trust and business structuring requires technical expertise, coordination with professionals, and long-term thinking. Most advisors don't have the experience or depth.

Albert Schuurman & Johnny Farinha
AS Brokers | FSP 17273
Specialists in estate planning, trust structuring, and business succession

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Albert Schuurman & Johnny Farinha
AS Brokers | FSP 17273

Independent Authorised Financial Service Provider

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