While the number of millionaires around Europe and the greater world tumbles, France’s population of nearly three million millionaires is staying stable.
Over 3.5 million people saw their millionaire status go up in smoke last year, according to the 2023 Global Wealth Report that was co-published on Tuesday by UBS and Credit Suisse banks, marking the first time such a considerable shift has occurred since the 2008 financial crisis.
SEVERAL FACTORS
Global private wealth took a tumble last year due to several factors, but notably high inflation, and the number of adults with assets over $1 million or €915,000) fell from 62.9 million at the close of 2021 to 59.4 million in 2022. Though a sharp decline, the report states that there are four times more “dollar millionaires”, that is people with a net worth of $1 million, than in 2000.
The so-called “fourth industrial revolution” also gets a look in as a cause, as lightning-fast development of technologies are changing the way the world operates.
Paul Donovan, the chief economist at UBS, said, “The global economy is experiencing a period of astonishing economic alteration. The sweeping changes of the fourth industrial revolution represent the most dramatic structural upheaval in 250 years. Revolutions, it turns out, are revolutionary – social as well as economic relationships will be challenged by this process.”
FRANCE
However, France, which has nearly three million millionaires living within the borders according to the report, saw its numbers remain relatively stable in 2022, with no decrease recorded on the previous year.
This is in marked contrast to other similarly developed countries like the United States, United Kingdom, Japan and Germany, who all saw a drop in their respective millionaire populations.
France harbours 4.8% of the world’s total millionaires, the third highest percentage globally.
Statistics for the Principality of Monaco were not included in the report.
OTHER FINDINGS
Regionally, wealth loss was “heavily concentrated” in North America and Europe, whose joint losses hit nearly $11 trillion (€10 trillion), whilst Pacific Asia lost $2.1 trillion (€1.9 trillion).
The biggest losers by country were the United States, Japan, China, Canada and Australia, whilst the largest wealth increases were recorded for Russia, Mexico, India and Brazil.
“This year’s Global Wealth Report reveals valuable insights about the state of our economy and society, as well as the shifting meaning and potential of prosperity,” said Iqbal Khan, President of Global Wealth Management at UBS. “This sweeping analysis of household wealth covers the estimated wealth holdings of 5.4 billion adults around the world and across the wealth spectrum.”
Interestingly, the study found that “overall wealth inequality also fell in 2022, with the wealth share of the global top 1% falling to 44.5%,” and that global wealth is expected to soon be on the rise again. The report estimates an uptick of 38% in the next five years. Middle income markets will drive the trend.
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Photo source: Alexander Kagan, Unsplash