Wealth finds its highest purpose when guided by values, planned with foresight, and shared responsibly across generations for societal good.
Rajmohan Krishnan
Principal Founder & MD, Entrust Family Office | Author, Wise Wealth
When people hear the title Wise Wealth, they may assume this is a book about money. It is — but only in part. More truthfully, it is a book about judgment, values, responsibility, and the kind of human being one becomes while creating, preserving, and giving away wealth. Over the years, through many conversations with families, entrepreneurs, investors, and philanthropists, I found myself returning to the same question: not how much wealth we create, but what wealth does to us and through us. Does it deepen our sense of responsibility, or only enlarge our sense of entitlement? Does it strengthen families and institutions, or quietly weaken them? Wise Wealth was born from that inquiry. It is also, in a very personal sense, born from gratitude — to the many individuals who gave their names, their honesty, and their trust to this effort.
This book brings together the voices of 35 remarkable leaders from business, finance, philanthropy, healthcare, law, culture, and social impact. None of them speaks of wealth as something merely to be possessed. They speak of it as something to be handled with thought, discipline, and conscience. It asks harder and more useful questions: What is enough? What should be preserved? What should be shared? How do families transmit values and not just assets? How do we build institutions that outlast personalities? How do we give in a way that is thoughtful rather than performative? Since we are honoured to have Ms Geetanjali Vikram Kirloskar with us, I want to acknowledge Mr Vikram Kirloskar with particular affection — a mentor, a guide, and one of the earliest customers of Entrust. His chapter in the book captures with rare clarity the power of discipline, restraint, and staying grounded through every season of life.
The leaders featured in this book — despite all their achievements — repeatedly return to ideas that are deeply human: humility, family, adversity, integrity, patience, trusteeship, and long-term thinking. The awareness that success without values eventually becomes fragile. Wealth is not tested only in moments of growth. It is tested in succession, in restraint, in generosity, and in whether it enlarges the family and society around it — or only the self. I hope this book does not merely inform. I hope it provokes reflection — encouraging founders, inheritors, professionals, and young readers to think more deeply about wealth. Not just how it is made, but how it is lived. My hope is simple: that Wise Wealth adds, in a small but meaningful way, to India’s conversation on enterprise, ethics, legacy, philanthropy, and the future of responsible wealth.
Ms Geetanjali Vikram Kirloskar
Chairperson & MD, Kirloskar Systems Pvt Ltd
Wealth is not just a personal achievement. It becomes a social responsibility. You get the power to influence lives beyond your own. Wealth is not about possession — it is about purpose. You need to grow your wealth to sustain yourself. Then you grow yourself, and finally, you give yourself. It is important to deploy wealth with a sense of responsibility, ethically and with sustainable practices. In our pursuit of expanding wealth — whether in a legacy business, a startup, or as an entrepreneur — keeping the ethics of building wealth in mind is where everything starts. And the starting point, always, is character. The values you build your enterprise on are the values that will define your legacy long after the enterprise itself has passed through many hands.
Giving is not loss. It is circulation. Strong societies create strong economies. When you invest and deploy your wealth wisely and responsibly, you are building a legacy — a true value of your wealth — one that outlives you. Wealth grows in value when it creates value for others. Today, stakeholders — investors, vendors, partners — look at ethics, governance, and sustainable practices. Many companies go beyond the CSR percentage the law requires, engaging with communities and giving from personal wealth. Philanthropic attitude has become a genuine measure of a corporation’s true worth. But giving should never be guilt alleviation. Luxury is not a bad word. Wealth is not a bad word — in creating it, you are providing employment to millions. At some point, though, you step back and ask how to circulate a part of it back to the community — not only for reputation, but from the heart.
This book is special because it brings together personal conversations with 35 prominent Indian business leaders. That intimacy makes a huge difference to the insights on how successful individuals think — about entrepreneurship, family values, governance, and philanthropy. What moves me most is that these leaders speak not just about strategy but about the human cost of getting it wrong — relationships strained, families divided, legacies undone — and the quiet satisfaction of getting it right across generations. I haven’t heard a phrase coined so beautifully — we are not talking about wealth and giving in the clichéd sense, but about wealth that is distributed and given back wisely. Wise Wealth. Thank you, Rajmohan.
PANEL DISCUSSION
Ms Sreepriya NS
Co-Founder & CEO, Entrust Family Office | Moderator
Ms Aarthi Lakshminarayanan
Partner, Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas
Mr Ganessh S Iyer
Founder & CEO, Pro-Risk Group
Sreepriya NS: Let me ask a simple question: what is tougher — building the business, or trusting someone and handing it over? Most founders will honestly say handing it over is tougher. At Entrust, one insight stands out clearly: wealth by itself does not make families sustainable. But if families are aligned, wealth can be grown, multiplied, and made sustainable.
Arti, let me begin with you. What is succession planning, and when is the right time to start?
Aarthi Lakshminarayanan: Succession planning and estate planning must begin at the earliest possible stage, ideally at the founder stage itself. That makes the transition easier for the next generation. The process depends on the number of family members, the quantum of wealth, the nature of assets, the businesses involved, and how far those businesses have expanded.
A succession plan may involve a will, a trust, companies, partnerships, holding entities, or a combination of these. The structure must fit the family; the family should not be forced into a structure simply because someone else has adopted it. The key goal is to create a good family charter or constitution document. This allows the family to define its values, systems, goals, expectations, roles, and responsibilities.
Succession planning is not only about who receives what. It is also about preparing people to lead, helping them understand responsibility, and equipping them to face a changing world.
What happens when families have not planned and transition happens suddenly?
Aarthi Lakshminarayanan: When there is no planning, the consequences can be serious. If there is a sudden death, dispute, or partition, and there is no registered will, trust, or clear document, the law takes over. The founder’s intention may be lost. Assets and businesses may be distributed according to succession law rather than family intent.
That is why continuity must be planned and assets must be protected. I often advise families to separate ownership and management. Ownership can be held through a trust or similar structure, while day-to-day operations can be managed through companies or professional teams. This helps the family retain ownership without disrupting business operations.
Ganesh, many families spend years building enterprises but leave founders or key successors uninsured or underinsured. What role does insurance play?
Ganessh S. Ayer: Stewardship is the infrastructure, and succession planning is the process. Insurance, annuity, pension, and liquidity from a properly drafted will are invisible pillars. People notice them only when they are needed.
In India, insurance has often been treated as an investment or tax-saving product, and the protection element has been forgotten. Keyman insurance, liability insurance, directors and officers insurance, trustee insurance, and cover for art, jewellery, patents, logos, and digital assets are all important. A will alone is not enough; liquidity is important.
If three partners run a business and one dies, the surviving partners may not want the deceased partner’s spouse to enter the business. Insurance proceeds can help the firm buy back that share, provided a legal agreement has already defined valuation and rights. This thinking applies to family businesses too.
The biggest risk may be that the next generation does not want to join the business. Succession planning must include the possibility that there may be no successor in the traditional sense.
Arti, how do families prepare the next generation to become stewards rather than mere beneficiaries?
Aarthi Lakshminarayanan: The earlier the better. Families must create a charter, define roles, and include all members irrespective of gender. The next generation must receive education, exposure, mentorship, and freedom to develop their own ideas. Some may not want to enter the family business, and that must be respected.
External advisers can help. Lawyers, chartered accountants, tax advisers, financial advisers, and family office professionals bring neutral perspectives. Family councils and steering councils are useful because they introduce investment, legal, regulatory, social, and governance perspectives.
Ganessh S. Ayer: Founders also need training. The next generation will speak about AI and new technologies, and the older generation cannot simply say, “My traditional business does not use this.” Reverse learning must happen.
Business continuity planning must also evolve. A family business must ask: what if my child is not interested, what if my industry changes, what if my competitor comes from outside my industry? A textile business may find that its competitor is not another textile shop, but a mobile phone. Families must be ready to pivot and review options regularly.
In a volatile world, how do families preserve unity without enforcing uniformity?
Aarthi Lakshminarayanan: From a legal perspective, continuity depends on documentation, defined roles, leadership planning, professional guidance, and conflict-resolution mechanisms. Families can include mediation in the family constitution so that disputes are resolved constructively before they escalate.
Ganessh S. Ayer: Documentation must be reviewed annually, biannually, or whenever a major family event occurs. More importantly, someone must be responsible for the review. Financial education must also begin early. In my home, I gave my children three piggy banks: 10% for giving, 25% for spending, and 65% for saving and investment. That teaches responsibility, choice, restraint, and values.
Sreepriya NS: Giving wealth without financial education is a risk. Values must come before wealth. In succession, there is no cookie-cutter method. Families must plan according to their own values, realities, assets, members, and aspirations. The most important ingredients are transparency, documentation, communication, adaptability, and trust.
