Norman K., a success story in “neo-wealth management”, is settling in Luxembourg, with the ambition of developing this profession in the city.
Norman K. is the story of four financial enthusiasts (Olivier Liot, Brice Monvoisin, Mathieu Mercati and Jean-Philippe Petit), experts in different fields but highly complementary from an operational point of view, and long-standing friends.
Passionate about their profession and its development, and sharing the same set of values, these four friends see that by combining their know-how, they can offer a tailor-made service in wealth management, because together they are able to cover all the needs of their wealthy, ultra-connected clients.
They united their professional destinies and founded Norman K. With offices in Paris and Nice from the outset, Norman K. and his four founders soon opened the London office. Then came the installation of the Geneva company. Norman K. went from strength to strength, after a start-up in the midst of a pandemic in 2021. And on1 January 2026, Norman K. decided to open an office in Luxembourg. A new strategic step for the Group.
Nicolas L’Hermite, who has been involved in wealth management in Luxembourg for 18 years, has been appointed to take over the reins of the Luxembourg entity. “This is a wonderful moment in my life,” said the new CEO, who has also become an Equity Partner.
The new CEO answered a few questions..
What are your ambitions as CEO of Norman K. Luxembourg?
With Norman K., I hope to bring something extra to the place, with the aim of working with all the members of the ecosystem. The wealth management market is growing strongly in Europe, and we claim to be able to develop a comprehensive, tailor-made service for our customers and business partners alike.
In Norman K.’s Luxembourg unit, our aim is to bring together around fifteen employees over the next 12 to 18 months, through a combination of organic and external growth. In Luxembourg, the market is well organised, making it easy to identify the players we can approach. To date, I think that around fifteen establishments are eligible.
Norman K. wants to remain the ideal structure for customers who want a Swiss Army knife to optimise and cover all their asset management needs.
How does Norman K.’s business model differ?
The business model was the driving force behind the association of the four founders. Wealth management has a number of different facets, with a variety of themes. This mainly involves traditional financial asset management, liability management (private and bank debt), advisory and structuring services for unlisted assets and family office activities. The respective positions of the four founders complemented each other perfectly to cover these activities even better, by integrating and internalising their resources and capabilities to deliver appropriate solutions to their customers. With a structure made up of four equally strong verticals.
Critical mass was reached very quickly. The advantage of the structure lies in its agility, and innovation can move faster.
What is your analysis of the business at the moment?
I’ve been here for 18 years, and I’ve witnessed the evolution of the market’s business model. I no longer believe in the model of a single service. Over the years, in my work as a banker, I have been able to offer increasingly different services to my customers, but I was limited to offering services with the label of the bank that employed me.
While most of the major banks have had to adapt to a new environment at a snail’s pace, the decision-making process has generally remained lengthy. With an execution plan liable to be disrupted by the need to adapt to a market that waits for no time and is constantly changing. Admittedly, the strength and power of these major players enable them to deploy considerable resources, but they find it more difficult to implement the flexibility and agility required for a made-to-measure service.
On the contrary, our responsiveness to customer feedback will be almost immediate within Norman K., reinventing asset management, thanks to the level of specialisation of each of us and the short circuit of this close proximity between us.
More concretely?
Today, with an open architecture, Norman K can go and find the best choice and the best service after analysing different solutions. The Group can support customers with its own investment criteria. At Norman K., I’m now in a position where I can better respond to customer needs and expectations. It’s powerful and comfortable. And without the lack of innovation that many asset management companies are facing today due to a lack of resources.
How sensitive are these families to investing today?
Each family has its own undeniable style.
Hardly available, they are often company directors, sometimes first generation, sometimes even sixth generation, with a lifestyle that revolves around digital technology. Their asset manager has become more of a partner, capable of managing and taking charge of the majority of their issues. In fact, you need to be able to accompany them on all the trails.
But they have one thing in common: their desire to make sense of what they do. They have a vision of what the world should be and are asking to be accompanied on this journey. Most are still involved in their business, sometimes more than marginally, and are looking for growth drivers in other promising activities.
The private market is ideal for their needs. We (the Norman K. Group), structurer, arein the middle, between the customer and the market, to be a player able to support the customer in all his needs and on an international scale. They have a digital tool that enables them to track the development of their assets.
Knowledge of the customer is essential, even considerable. We need to be able, without constraints, to offer the cutting-edge possibilities that the market is capable of offering today (fintech, wealthtech, etc.), with a tailor-made analysis that should lead to informed and, above all, effective decisions.
Are their investment themes changing?
They are less and less inclined to participate in real estate funds and prefer to do their own picking, to be closer to home. Not everyone can be everywhere at the same time. There is a premium for proximity and the purity of these investments.
The AI theme is always present, but today it is looked at with a more attentive eye to value enhancement, because we have become relatively cautious about this theme. They still have an appetite for the medical and defence sectors, but also for well-being, better living and ageing…
