Updated posts 2026
The ultimate mogul fest was back in the Hamptons with the 1640 Society private annual meeting of billionaire families, global leaders and some of the most significant family offices meeting at a private home in Southampton at the end of August to discuss issues affecting the global elite, and top 1%. It is an exclusive invitation-only event that brings together leading family members, and family offices from around the globe for closed door private discussions.
The Forum covered relevant topics including impact investing, asset allocation, wealth preservation philanthropy, cyber security, blockchain, tech investing, as well as how to create family harmony, values & legacy. Families attending came to the Hamptons from across the globe including Asia, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, UAE, Latin America, & with many leaving their summer vacation yachts in Europe to join. The main meeting is once a year in the Hamptons with another earlier in the year in Palm Beach.
The audience consisted of some of the leading families from across the globe including Royal family members from Europe and the Middle East, owners & CEO’s of some of the largest companies in the world, self made tech billionaires, next-gen legacy family members, heirs as well as the Chief Investment Officers who make key financial decisions for the families. Security was tight throughout the conference, with checkpoints at every entrance to the residence and anonymous security guards protecting some of the families attending.
The rise of gatherings like this one tracks the growth of family offices themselves, which have multiplied worldwide as private fortunes have expanded and their owners have grown less interested in handing management to outside banks. A single family office may deploy capital across private equity, real estate, venture, and direct company stakes, functioning much like an institutional investor while answering to no one but the family. What such groups lack is deal flow from peers, which is precisely what a closed-door forum supplies.
Private discussions at the Forum were fascinating ranging from conversations on purchasing private islands, getaway homes in New Zealand & Switzerland, family kidnappings, multimillion ransoms, security protocols, family governance, co-investing with other families in philanthropy that can change the world and make it better to families who compared notes on the latest professional football, hockey or soccer team they acquired. Fashion icon Donna Karan met and bonded with pop star Ciara over dinner the evening before the Forum and chatted into the late evening.
It was the first time both leaders of fashion and music & entertainment had met. The official panel discussions were just as interesting as the unofficial chats. The 1640 Society is known for bringing influential families with synergies together to form unique bonds that can last a lifetime. Another exceptional panel merged 3 billionaire families with father and son or daughters on the panel including Donna and Gabby Karan Felice, Andy and Sam Sabin and Andrea Catsimatidis. Global leaders from across the globe including the former US Ambassador to the EU, with the Byrne family, a Warren Buffet protege whose family started GEICO insurance giant were led in a discussion by Ambassador Kurt Volker, Former US Ambassador to NATO and Special Representative for the Ukraine on how to solve the Russian and Ukraine crisis.
Actress, singer and entrepreneur Ciara Wilson impressed families with her business brain and desire to have a positive impact on the world, billionaire philanthropists the Siegels participated in a philanthropy panel with NFL Hall of Famer Ray Lewis and a European billionaire, and the billionaires who invented the code for google spoke on capturing the next tech unicorns. David Rubenstein Co-Founder & Co-Chairman of The Carlyle Group ended the day with a conversation on global philanthropy, leadership and investing in a global economy.
The Siegel’s had flown an emerging pop singer in on their jet to perform some of her hit songs while guests mingled over cocktails, and enjoyed Grammy award winning Ciara’s Ten for One rum concoctions, sophisticated offerings from Adobe Road Winery, Mirabeau Rose and Gin, Oceano Wines, & spirited concoctions from Naked Diablo tequila and Deluxe Vodka.
Some of the most influential families in the Hamptons attended and many high net worth families who applied could not get admitted. Thousands applied to attend and the Committee runs the Forum like a country club with a rigorous approval process and takes applications with only 200 families approved to join the Forum annually. Families who got past the ultimate velvet rope include some of the leading names in America including the Pitcairns, Kennedy’s, Bush, Firestone’s, Ford’s, Rockefeller’s, Bronfman’s, Kettering, Getty’s, Kluge, Pritzker’s, Johnson’s, Heinz, Hunt’s, tech entrepreneurs such as Musk who co-founded Paypal, along with international magnates including the Mittal family form India & Pears families from Europe. Westhampton airport had over 40 private jets fly in just for the exclusive and highly anticipated Forum. The next Forum is in Palm Beach on Monday April 8th Details on www.1640society.com if you are fortunate enough to secure an invitation.
