LONDON, 4 February 2026 – High Trail Wealth, a global family office based in London, announced a multi-country philanthropic initiative designed to strengthen education systems and reduce poverty across the Western Balkans. The initiative will focus on expanding access to quality schooling, early childhood education and skills development for children and youth in communities facing persistent socio-economic hardship.
This commitment is driven by one of the firm’s core families with deep heritage in the region, reflecting High Trail Wealth’s role in helping clients direct capital back to their roots. The programme was inspired by their first-hand experience of growing up in the Balkans and seeing how critical education is in determining a young person’s future. Recognising that talent is widespread, but opportunity is not, the client has chosen to invest in the educational infrastructure needed to help the next generation succeed.
The programme will launch across Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia, where young people still face significantly higher risks of being out of education, employment or training than their peers in the European Union. Recent Eurofound research shows that NEET rates for 15-24-year-olds in the region range from around 13% in Serbia to roughly 33% in Kosovo, well above the EU average. OECD analysis of PISA results also indicates that average reading performance in Western Balkan education systems remains below EU and OECD benchmarks, with wide gaps between the highest and lowest performing students.
Working with selected local non-profits and public institutions, High Trail Wealth has committed an initial multi-year envelope in the low tens of millions of euros for the first phase, with the goal of reaching at least 20,000 children and adolescents across dozens of communities over the first five years. This phase will focus on early childhood and primary education, with backing for local preschools, teacher training and practical digital tools in classrooms, together with direct support for families at risk of poverty through measures such as school meals or transport stipends.
Initial projects will concentrate on early years provision and the primary-school years, paired with community-based programmes that help families keep children in education and reduce the risk of long-term exclusion from the labour market. The initiative will support community organisations that provide social support and mentoring for young people, helping them move into further education or work at a time when NEET rates in parts of the region remain among the highest in Europe.
High Trail Wealth’s role extends beyond funding. The family office helps design outcome-focused frameworks and practical governance so that projects can scale and attract additional partners over time, including other families and institutional funders interested in the Western Balkans. By connecting philanthropic capital with existing regional platforms and EU-aligned initiatives, the programme aims to reinforce current efforts to expand opportunity for children and young people across six Western Balkan economies.
About High Trail Wealth
High Trail Wealth is a London-based family office advising on approximately $1.5 billion in assets for 15 core families and family enterprises. The boutique office combines cross-border investment capabilities with deep experience in family governance and long-term stewardship, supported by a fully proprietary deal-sourcing model. Philanthropy is central to how High Trail Wealth families engage with the world. They focus on helping families invest back into communities where their heritage and relationships run deepest, and they turn clear conversations about priorities and roles into structured, efficient and compliant giving
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