The United States continues to be the center of global wealth, hosting 23.8 million millionaires in 2024—more than any other nation, as reported by Swiss bank UBS and highlighted by CNBC.
The UBS report indicates that the U.S. added approximately 379,000 new millionaires in just one year, averaging over 1,000 each day, a 1.5% increase overall. China follows in second place with 6.3 million millionaires, seeing an annual rise of 2.3%, which equates to about 141,000 new wealthy individuals. Turkey experienced a notable growth of 8.4%, resulting in a total of 87,000 millionaires.
15 Individuals Control $2.4 Trillion in Wealth!
Additionally, the UBS study estimates that around 60 million people hold an astonishing $226.5 trillion in assets—almost half of the world’s wealth. Within this group, 2,860 billionaires control $15.7 trillion, while just 15 millionaires—less than 1% of them—manage a collective $2.4 trillion.
UBS Chief Economist James Mazza noted that wealth concentration is apparent even among billionaires, largely driven by the tech industry’s exceptional performance and the emergence of major market players.
UBS Global Wealth Report: Wealth Growth Accelerates for Second Consecutive Year
How American Wealth Continues to Flourish
In 2024, American wealth benefited from strong Wall Street performance and the stability of the U.S. dollar. Nonetheless, the first half of 2025 ushered in volatility, with a renewed trade war and recession fears during Donald Trump’s presidency negatively affecting markets, leading to a roughly 9% drop in the dollar this year.
Mazza told CNBC that it is too soon to confidently predict a significant slowdown in the U.S. wealth growth. He explained that a weakening dollar usually enhances wealth in other currency regions without necessarily decreasing wealth domestically.
He also pointed out the robustness of the American housing market and expressed hope that stock values could close the year slightly higher:
“This year might be less vibrant than the last, but we don’t anticipate a reversal. The fundamental drivers of the U.S. economy remain intact.”
U.S. Holds Most Millionaires, But Where Are Others Going?
While the U.S. is home to nearly 40% of millionaires worldwide, nations like Luxembourg and Switzerland have a higher proportion of wealthy individuals, with over 15% of adults possessing assets exceeding $1 million.
The global millionaire population increased by 684,000, reaching 60 million, largely due to rising real estate prices. However, this growth was uneven, with countries like Japan losing 33,000 millionaires, a decline partially attributed to population decrease.
Billionaires on the Move: Changing the Wealth Landscape
The billionaire count rose slightly to 2,891. However, Mazza observed significant shifts: in 15 out of 56 surveyed markets, billionaire wealth declined, with the steepest losses in the Netherlands and Uruguay. Conversely, Singapore, Qatar, Greece, and Poland reported the largest increases in billionaire populations.
The Unsung Influence of “Everyday Millionaires”
Data on individuals with net worths between $50 million and $1 billion remains scarce, obscuring the complete picture. Growth in the middle and lower wealth tiers is often underestimated.
According to UBS, there are now over 52 million “everyday millionaires”—those with wealth from $1 million to $5 million—a fourfold increase since 2000.
“Collectively, they possess more wealth than all billionaires combined,” noted Mazza.
“The ascent of this group often goes unnoticed,” he concluded.
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