The 2024 UBS Global Wealth Report reveals that there are at least 58 million US dollar millionaires in the world, accounting for 1.5 percent of the global adult population. The United States has the highest number of millionaires, followed by China, the United Kingdom, France, and Japan. UBS defines wealth as the value of financial and real assets minus debts held by a household. Global wealth grew by 4.2 percent in 2023 after a decline in 2022.
The report predicts that by 2028, the UK will lose nearly one in six of its millionaires, while the Netherlands will lose 4 percent. It attributes these losses to a more mobile element of millionaires who may choose to domicile elsewhere. Almost half of the world’s wealth is held by just 1.5 percent of the global adult population, with households holding more than $1 million. Those with wealth of less than $10,000 hold just 0.5 percent of global wealth.
Since 2000, there has been significant progress in the number of millionaires globally, with the percentage of adults whose wealth exceeds $1 million tripling. Qatar saw the greatest increase in the number of millionaires, followed by China and Kazakhstan. Wealth growth is closely related to economic growth, with emerging market economies and commodity exporters experiencing fast accumulation of wealth, particularly in the top 10 percent of the wealth bracket.
The Asia Pacific region has seen the biggest growth in wealth over the past 15 years, followed by the Americas, while Europe, the Middle East, and Africa had the lowest growth rate. The United States hosts 38 percent of the world’s millionaires, with Western Europe and China following closely behind. In percentage terms, Switzerland has the highest share of millionaires, followed by Hong Kong, Australia, the Netherlands, and the US.
In conclusion, the UBS Global Wealth Report highlights the distribution of wealth globally, with a significant concentration of wealth in a small percentage of the population. The report also illustrates the growth in the number of millionaires, with emerging market economies and commodity exporters experiencing the fastest accumulation of wealth. The future trends in millionaire populations in different countries also provide insight into how wealth distribution may evolve in the coming years.
