Our Standards
How we research, evaluate and maintain the directory. Transparent, verifiable and public-source-based.
The Trophy Registry is a curated directory of professionals who serve the ultra-high-net-worth market. We do not accept paid listings without scrutiny. Our research is based exclusively on publicly verifiable sources: industry rankings, legal directories, institutional affiliations, professional credentials and publicly documented transaction histories.
1. Manual Curation: Every Entry
Every professional listed on the Trophy Registry has been individually researched by our editorial team. We do not use automated scraping, AI-generated lists or bulk data imports. Each entry is the result of a manual research process: we identify the leading practitioners in a discipline, verify their current institutional affiliation, review their publicly documented track record and assess their UHNW specialisation.
This manual curation badge appears on every profile in the directory, it is our baseline standard.
2. Institutional Verification
A subset of listed professionals carry the "Institutionally Verified" badge. This distinction is awarded when the professional appears in one or more recognised, independent, third-party rankings or directories in their discipline:
Chambers & Partners, Legal 500, Who's Who Legal, IBA Private Client Committee membership
WealthBriefing, Financial Times Private Wealth rankings, Euromoney, PWM/The Banker
Institutional affiliation with a recognised brand; public transaction records where available
BOAT International rankings, verified fleet size, recognised brokerage memberships (MYBA, IYBA, NBAA)
We are transparent about the limits of our verification. Disciplines with robust public ranking systems (legal, private banking) have proportionally more verified entries than disciplines where practice is predominantly off-market (real estate, art advisory). This is not a reflection of quality, it is a reflection of how each market operates.
3. UHNW Specialisation
Every listed professional must demonstrate that their practice is focused on the ultra-high-net-worth segment. Indicators include:
- Dedicated UHNW / private client department at their firm
- Specialist professional body memberships (STEP for trust practitioners, ACTEC for estate planners, MYBA for yacht brokers)
- Verifiable transaction history at UHNW-relevant thresholds
- Peer recognition in discipline-specific rankings
4. Discretion and Off-Market Practice
We recognise that the most effective professionals in several of our categories, particularly real estate and art advisory, operate predominantly off-market. Their value lies in access, not advertising. For these professionals, institutional affiliation, tenure and professional credentials carry proportionally greater weight than publicly documented transaction records. They carry the "Off-Market" badge to signal this distinction to potential clients.
Ongoing Maintenance
Professional profiles are subject to periodic review. Each profile displays the date of its last editorial review. Changes in employment, disciplinary actions or material changes to a firm's standing may result in re-evaluation or removal from the directory.
We encourage listed professionals to notify us of changes to their practice, affiliation or contact details via info@trophyregistry.com.
Are you a professional serving UHNW clients who meets these standards?
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