Strategies
From insurance wrappers to multi-asset preservation mandates, our strategies are built for durability, not quarterly performance tables.
Speak to an Advisor
Most investment strategies are optimised to look impressive in a rising market. Sterling & Hartwell's strategies are optimised to survive a falling one. The distinction matters enormously over a 20-year horizon. A client who avoids a catastrophic loss in year three preserves the compounding base that makes year twenty genuinely transformative. Our strategy design process begins with a detailed risk capacity and liquidity analysis. We map your existing asset base, liability profile, and succession intentions before identifying the structural tools best suited to your long-term mandate. The result is a bespoke protection architecture rather than a product selection exercise.
Each strategy family addresses a distinct dimension of capital risk, and most clients hold a combination of two or three simultaneously.
Structured notes and deposit-linked instruments that provide a legally defined floor — typically 90–100 % of invested capital — while offering measured participation in equity or commodity upside. Issued through EU-regulated counterparties, settled in RON, EUR, or USD according to client preference.
Unit-linked and non-linked insurance wrappers authorised under Romanian and EU insurance directives. These vehicles segregate assets from the client's personal estate, provide creditor insulation, and allow tax-efficient accumulation and drawdown across multiple asset classes including equities, bonds, and real assets.
For clients with cross-border exposure — real estate in multiple EU states, foreign-currency income, or international business interests — we build custody and asset structures spanning Luxembourg, Austria, and Romania that meet ANAF reporting obligations while reducing single-jurisdiction concentration risk.
Romanian inheritance law creates specific challenges for high-value estates, particularly those containing business equity and real property. We design beneficiary-designated structures and testamentary insurance vehicles that pass wealth to the next generation with minimal friction, delay, and fiscal leakage.
For clients who require liquidity alongside protection, we manage risk-graded fixed-income and absolute-return mandates denominated in EUR and RON. These portfolios prioritise drawdown management and capital stability over maximum return, providing a reliable anchor within a broader wealth structure.
“The insurance wrapper structure Sterling & Hartwell built for my family in 2018 has done exactly what was promised — it sheltered a substantial portion of my business sale proceeds from the volatility of 2020 and 2022, and the succession planning layer means my children will inherit clean assets, not a legal puzzle. I wish I had done this a decade earlier.”
Mirela Florescu, Constanța — Logistics business owner
Our typical client engagement begins at EUR 250,000 in investable assets. This threshold reflects the minimum required to build a meaningfully diversified protection structure. Clients with larger estates often engage us for multiple simultaneous mandates across the strategy families described above.
Yes. All strategies we recommend are structured through vehicles and counterparties regulated by the Romanian Financial Supervisory Authority (ASF) and, where relevant, by the relevant authority in Luxembourg or Austria. Sterling & Hartwell itself operates in compliance with Romanian financial advisory regulations and EU MiFID II requirements.
Under current Romanian tax law, gains within a unit-linked insurance wrapper are not subject to capital gains tax until withdrawal. At the point of withdrawal, the taxable base is the gain element only, subject to the applicable personal income tax rate. We recommend clients consult a Romanian tax advisor alongside our advisory engagement, and we can refer qualified professionals.
Liquidity terms vary by structure. Capital-guaranteed notes typically have defined maturity dates of 3–7 years, though secondary market sales are often possible. Insurance wrappers generally allow partial or full surrender with 10–30 business days' notice, subject to the specific policy terms. We always map your liquidity requirements before recommending any structure.
No two protection mandates are alike. Contact our Constanța office to begin a confidential, no-obligation assessment of your current exposure.
Begin Your Assessment