Overstone helps to identify the financial risk and opportunity of an artwork or a collection so that UHNWs can use art as an asset. The business is tapping into a rising affluent middle class which is spending money on fine art.

London-based Overstone Art Services, a firm providing risk scores for family offices, private banks and wealth managers, has appointed Sophie Brown to join its team; she will be focusing on building out the business across Asia.

Brown began her career as a chartered accountant at PwC before moving into mergers and acquisitions and debt structuring. Having served as finance director of several companies, Brown will bring an extensive network of high net worth individuals, family offices and financial institutions to the business. 

“Asian wealth management is such an exciting space to be in. I’m thrilled to be working with such a bright team with such unique products,” Brown said. “Art assets incur legal and maintenance costs balanced against potential price appreciation, so understanding the full financial potential of an artwork is only the next level towards a holistic wealth management strategy.”

Overstone helps to help identify the financial risk and opportunity of an artwork or a collection so that UHNWs can use art as an asset. The business works with wealth managers to help them leverage art for their UHNW clients to use as collateral for loans.

This publication has interviewed Harco van den Oever, Overstone’s founder and chief executive, who noted that as many as a third of art collectors keep their works in storage and out of view, suggesting that a sizeable chunk of the $1.74 trillion of privately held art could be lent against and used to drive liquidity in the market.

See here for a report about the state of the global art market from UBS and Art Basel.