The number of Super Rich people in the World is constantly increasing

Knight Frank's new statistics show that the number of super-rich people in the world is constantly increasing.

In recent years, pandemics, geopolitical tensions and supply chain disruptions have turned the world upside down, but that hasn't stopped the massive rise of the world's super-rich.

According to Knight Frank's latest Wealth Report, the number of ultra-high net worth individuals (UHNWI) grew by 9.3% in 2021, from 558,828 to 610,569. Specifically, UHNWIs are asset holders who can invest $30 million or more.

The number of Super Rich people in the World is constantly increasing

Most regions see an increase in the super-rich between 2020 and 2021. With more than 230,000 UHNWIs in 2021, North America is the region with the most super-rich people in the world, followed by Asia with nearly 170,000 people.

Europe is the third region after North America and Asia. The top group of countries for the super-rich in Europe in 2021 are France (30,000 people), Germany (28,000 people), the United Kingdom (25,000 people) and Italy (17,000 people). On a per capita basis, Monaco has the highest density of super-rich people in the world - 5 out of every 1000 people.

In 2021, the super-rich population in North America increased by 12.2% and Asia by 7.2%. The only region in the world that saw a decline in the UHNWI population was Africa with -0.8%.

Interestingly, the super-rich in Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) have the second fastest growth rate with 11.2%, just behind North America. Oil prices, property prices rebounded and stock market valuations are likely to spur this growth. However, post-conflict sanctions and an economic downturn could cost the oligarchs quite a bit of wealth for years to come.

The top five UHNWI population growth countries are the US, UK, France, Japan and China. The stock market plays a big role in the rise of the super-rich in these countries.

Worldwide, the super-rich is expected to grow with an amazing number of 28% by 2026. Another more shocking figure is that over the five-year period from 2016-2021, the growth rate almost tripled and estimating to reach 75% within the next 5 years.

Asia and Australia are forecast to be the fastest growing regions. Over five years (2021-2026), UHNWIs in both regions are expected to grow by 33%. Singapore is predicted to have a 268% increase in its super-rich population. China's super-rich population is expected to grow by more than 42%.

Meanwhile, North America is expected to grow 28%, or a total of 300,000 UHNWIs, by 2026.

Latin America is also forecasted to see significant growth. Against the backdrop of hyperinflation, Argentina is estimated to see a 38% increase in its super-rich population.

As reported by Knight Frank, sky-high asset values and a real estate boom are the two main drivers for this trend. Extremely low interest rates during the pandemic are also among the reasons.

With low interest rates, the super-rich have more leverage to build more wealth, expanding their assets by buying more real estate or investing in financial assets. In fact, every super-rich person in the world owns 2.9 properties on average.

But the figures for the super-rich in Africa show that the wealth generated by the UHNWI group is not evenly distributed. Not only for the rich, the disparity is even more evident through the level of global inequality. Rising food and energy costs, even in developed countries, widen the disparity.