Collectors urged to plan ahead for 'Great Stuff Transfer'

Wealthy collectors should combine their passion for collecting with purposeful planning to protect their family wealth in the ‘Great Stuff Transfer’, according to HSBC Private Bank.

The bank’s latest report, Collectibles: Having purpose and passion, explores how the global collectibles market is continuing to expand and evolve, particularly in Asia. Amid rising wealth, high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth individuals are increasingly building large private collections around the world, including in art, cars, ceramics and memorabilia.

While collecting often begins organically, practicalities become increasingly important as collections grow in scale and significance, including the need for logistics, storage, installation and maintenance. With building, maintaining, and ultimately passing on a collection being more complicated than it first appears, HSBC Private Bank stresses the importance of:

Regular informational audits, including the Cataloguing and appraising passion assets on a regular basis help to create informational building blocks to aid a smoother transfer to the next generation. Collectors should also ensure that their heirs know where their assets are located and how to gain access to them when needed.

Maintaining an open dialogue with children should clarify a collector’s purpose for their collection. This means that at inheritance heirs should have a clear understanding of whether the collector wishes for their assets to be kept intact, divided, retained, donated, placed on public display, or sold.

Formalising passion assets within a wider estate plan can reduce the risk of disputes between heirs, significantly lowering legal, logistical, tax and emotional burdens for beneficiaries, particularly during periods of bereavement.

The report also looks at other emerging trends, such as how rising wealth in Asia is changing tastes and creating new hubs, how Middle Eastern collectors are increasingly active in the car market, and how women are more likely to collect in line with their values. It also looks at the power of nostalgia driving the memorabilia markets, which led to a comic book bought for 10 cents in 1938 being sold in January 2026 for $15 million.

Ida Liu, CEO, HSBC Private Bank, said: “Private collections are expressions of identity, legacy and intention. As they grow in significance, so too does the responsibility of stewardship. With thoughtful planning, collectors can preserve not only what they have built, but the meaning behind it for generations to come.”

Re-disseminated by Wealth and Society