For families and family-owned companies stewarding significant capital, the priority is no longer to build wealth – it is to preserve it, grow it sensibly, and pass it on well. We deliver the capabilities of a dedicated family office through a virtual model, bringing institutional research, structural access to private markets, and a clear separation of duties – all coordinated by a team that answers only to the family it serves. For families across Australia, this kind of rigorous family office service has historically been out of reach. We have built a model that changes that.
At the centre of every engagement is your Investment Policy Statement – the anchor that keeps decisions consistent as stewardship passes from one generation to the next. Around it, four separate organisations each play a single role: Family Wealth Advisory as adviser and portfolio manager; Mercer as research sub-adviser; an independent managed-account provider for implementation; and an independent custodian.
FWA brings institutional rigour without institutional overhead – it is a structure built on genuine family office discipline, with advisory and wealth management accountability built in, not relied upon as a promise.
Note: Our family office advisory and family office wealth management services are available to wholesale clients only, as defined in sections 761G and 761GA of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth).
Who We Work With
Family Office is built for families and principals stewarding significant capital who want an investment partner with the rigour of an institution and the agility of a boutique.
Family offices and semi-institutional clients
This includes charitable trusts, foundations and aged care groups seeking impartial portfolio management.
Sophisticated individuals and families
Senior executives, financial professionals and other principals who want their personal capital managed with the same discipline they apply professionally.
Families at a turning point
Owners who have sold a business, families who have liquidated a significant real asset, and those managing intergenerational capital – at the point when the priority shifts from building wealth to preserving and growing it well.
Meet the
Investment Committee
Michael Bova
Founder | Managing Director | Investment Committee ChairMichael founded Family Wealth Advisory in 2009 with a clear conviction: that great advice means sitting alongside families as a trusted custodian of their wealth, not just their portfolio. Today, he helps successful families, business owners and executives make confident financial decisions, protect what matters most, and create meaningful legacies for future generations.
Holding degrees in Law and Accounting, Michael is both a Chartered Accountant and Financial Planner. Prior to founding Family Wealth Advisory, he worked with KPMG, Chase Manhattan Bank and JP Morgan Chase, building expertise in tax, wealth structuring, and investment strategy.
As a Strategic Wealth Adviser and accredited SMSF Specialist, Michael works closely with high-net-worth families, family business owners, and senior executives. His focus is helping clients achieve financial independence through strategic wealth planning, tax minimisation, asset protection, and intergenerational wealth strategies. He has been recognised among Australia’s FS Power 50 Most Influential Advisers and Barron’s Top 150 Financial Advisers.
A keen student of behavioural finance, Michael believes successful wealth management is as much about values, relationships and decision-making as it is about investments and financial structures.
Beyond the Numbers: Family sits at the heart of Michael’s life and remains the inspiration behind Family Wealth Advisory’s mission to help families thrive across generations. Together with his wife and four children, he understands firsthand that wealth is not simply measured financially, but in the opportunities, we create, the people we protect and the values we pass on.
The conversations Michael has with clients about stewardship, responsibility and legacy are ones he also reflects on in his own family. Outside the office, he serves as Secretary of Nanyima, a not-for-profit before and after school care service, and is a dedicated fitness enthusiast who believes meaningful results come from discipline, consistency and continuing to show up.
Robert Woodford
Head of Private Portfolio ManagementRobert is Head of Private Portfolio Management at Family Wealth Advisory, bringing more than two decades of experience in capital markets and investment advice for high-net-worth families across Sydney and London. He spent six years as a Partner at Perpetual Limited leading its high-net-worth division, and has held senior roles at Westpac Institutional Bank, NAB Asset Management, Nikko, AMP Capital and Columbus Capital, which he co-founded. Earlier in his career he worked in London with Bankers Trust and ING Barings.
Robert holds a Bachelor of Business Studies in Accounting & Finance, a Master of Applied Finance from Macquarie University, is a member of the CFA Institute and was recognised in Barron’s Top 100 Financial Advisers in 2023.
Beyond the numbers: Robert is a keen reader of history, politics and economics, and is perpetually working to resolve what he describes as a “liquidity problem” in his wine cellar.
Vaughn Brand
Chief Operating Officer | Principal | Senior Wealth AdvisorVaughn is Chief Operating Officer and Principal at Family Wealth Advisory, where he also serves as a Senior Wealth Advisor with a strong focus on delivering strategic, outcomes-driven advice to high-net-worth individuals and complex family groups. He began his career in financial planning in South Africa in 2011 – spending close to a decade advising clients across the finance, engineering and medical sectors before relocating to Australia where he requalified and quickly established himself as a senior member of the profession.
As COO, Vaughn oversees team development, systems and processes to ensure a consistently high-quality client experience, and leads the training of Professional Year advisors. He holds an SMSF Specialist Adviser accreditation and further qualifications in Commercial Law and Taxation.
Beyond the numbers: Vaughn loves seeking adventure with his family and is a passionate trail runner, currently preparing for his next 100km race.
Robert Hill
Chief Compliance Officer | Principal | Senior Wealth AdvisorRobert has worked in financial services since 2007 and has been a Financial Advisor since 2011, bringing experience across a wide variety of clients and circumstances. He is passionate about delivering personalised advice and tailored strategies that help clients achieve their individual financial goals, and brings both technical rigour and genuine care to every client relationship.
Robert is a Certified Financial Planner®, holds a degree in Economics from the University of Leeds and an Advanced Diploma of Financial Services.
Beyond the numbers: Robert has a passion for travel and is an enthusiastic follower of sport, with a particular love of football, Formula One and Rugby League. He is a member of the Australian Turf Club and Western Sydney Wanderers.
Rebecca Jacques
Investment Committee MemberRebecca is Head of Investment Solutions for the Wealth Management client segment in the Pacific at Mercer, leading the Portfolio Solutions Group, which is responsible for Mercer’s Managed Account business, the Advance Diversified Multi-Manager Funds and Mercer Indexed Diversified Funds. She is a member of multiple Mercer investment committees across asset allocation, public markets, private markets and research ratings, and serves as an Investment Committee Member at Family Wealth Advisory.
With a career in financial services spanning more than two decades, Rebecca holds a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) majoring in Economics and Politics from Monash University and a Graduate Diploma in Applied Finance and Investments from the Securities Institute of Australia.
Beyond the numbers: Rebecca enjoys gardening, sailing, reading a good mystery and travelling when time allows. She has two teenage daughters who have kept life busy and full.
Andrew Stewart
Investment Committee MemberAndrew is a Principal in Mercer’s Investments business, based in Sydney, where he leads the selection of investment managers and strategies within the wealth client segment – providing asset allocation and investment strategy advice to clients. Before joining Mercer in 2020, Andrew gained more than eight years of experience across the multi-family office and wealth management industries, advising ultra-high and high-net-worth clients on asset allocation, investment selection and overall strategy.
Andrew holds a Bachelor of Commerce in Accounting and International Business and a Bachelor of Laws in Corporate and Commercial Law from Bond University, and is a CFA® charterholder.
Beyond the numbers: When he is not at his desk, Andrew can be found on the golf course, watching sport or planning his next trip abroad.
Brad Matthews
Investment Committee MemberBrad is a highly regarded investment strategist with a career spanning more than four decades in the finance industry. After working in money and foreign exchange markets in the mid-1980s, Brad held a range of economist and investment strategy roles as well as senior executive management positions in banking. Since 2015 he has operated his own investment consultancy and serves as an external member of the Family Wealth Advisory Investment Committee.
Brad holds a Bachelor of Commerce with merit from UNSW, a Certificate in Financial Planning and a Graduate Diploma in Applied Finance and Investment.
Beyond the numbers: Brad is a keen competitive tennis player and also has spent more than three decades championing economics education, editing “Plain English Economics”, a newsletter read by secondary students studying economics across the country.
