London Evening Standard/London
A policeman stands in front of the home of Eva Rausing in London yesterday
The death of Eva Rausing is now likely to trigger family soul-searching about whether the dynastic fortune should “skip a generation” to bypass her drug-abusing husband Hans Kristian.
Financial advisers say the priority will be setting up trust fund structures for the couple’s four children that will provide them with security while minimising the risk that any of them will follow their parents down the spiral of self-destruction.
It is thought likely that any wealth Eva Rausing possessed in her name will be passed straight on to the couple’s four children.
Eva, the daughter of a wealthy American soft drinks executive, is believed to have had considerable assets in her own right, although these will be dwarfed by the estimated £5.4bn fortune of her widower’s family.
Yogi Dewan of Hassium Asset Management, which specialises in managing wealth on behalf of rich families, said: “If I had been in Eva’s situation I would have made sure I had a very good executor in place and left everything I owned to the four children. That is separate from the inheritance they will eventually receive from the Rausing family.
“The main thing they will need is strong trustees to look after them and make sure the wealth is protected over the next 20 to 30 years. As they get older they will receive income from the trusts but I would not give them access to the main assets in the trusts for a very, very long time.”