LGT Chair: «Excessive and Stupid Nationalism» in Geopolitics
LGT chairman Prince Max von und zu Liechtenstein believes that multilateralism has served the world well, describing the current state of geopolitics as one with «excessive and stupid nationalism».
The global geopolitical landscape is becoming increasingly divisive with some countries opting to take unilateral action to serve their individual interests. According to H.S.H. Prince Max von und zu Liechtenstein, who is also the chairman of LGT, extreme forms of nationalism have historically proven to be potentially risky and lead to disastrous outcomes.
«I feel a bit disappointed about the developments because I feel like history once more doesn't quite repeat itself, but it rhymes,» he said during the «Bloomberg Family Office Summit 2026» in Hong Kong on March 25, in reference to the First and Second World Wars.
«People don't seem to remember what created these horrible world wars. It had a lot to do with excessive and stupid nationalism. I feel that I see too much of that when I'm analyzing the current geopolitics. There was a period when the United Nations was established, when the EU was established, when multilateral agreements with the support of the Americans were essentially set up that have served the world, including Asia, incredibly well.»
Investing With Purpose
While Prince Max views diversification as a means of weathering volatility from elevated geopolitical tensions, he believes that embedding beliefs and values is key to surviving in the long term across generations.
«I think if you look at what type of organizations survive for a long time and create good legacies, they tend to be organizations that integrate purpose into what they're doing. I think about some of the oldest organizations that we all are aware of, they tend to be universities – Cambridge, Oxford, all universities in the US. They tend to be religious organizations, they tend to be states, all sorts of organizations with purpose,» he explained.
Sovereignty Via M&A
On the 900-year old family of Prince Max, he noted that it also applies the approach of integrating purpose and investing with a constitution passed down to remain relevant in society, coupled with the founding of Liechtenstein through a union between Vaduz and Schellenberg in 1719.
«Liechtenstein is the only country that I'm aware of that was formed through M&A,» Prince Max added.
