Editor’s note: This article was first published in May 2013. The figures are from BCG’s Global Wealth report of 2013 (2012 data): $135 trillion of private wealth and $52.8 trillion held by the top 1%. Its forecasts for the following five years (to 2017) have since expired, and several indices at all-time highs refers to May 2013.
The richest 1% of the population already controls 39% of global wealth, and its share will keep growing over the coming years, according to the Boston Consulting Group’s Global Wealth report.
Total private wealth in the world grew by 7.8% to $135 trillion, of which the richest 1% own $52.8 trillion. Millionaires’ wealth is growing faster than total global wealth, and the pace of growth among the 1% has shot up. The number of millionaires has also risen by 10%, according to the report.
The report also predicts that global wealth will grow by around 4.8% a year over the next five years, while this 1% (the millionaires) will see their capital grow almost twice as fast, at 9.2%.
What is driving the wealth of the richest?
It varies from country to country, but in the developed world, in the United States and Europe, it is down to rising markets: during the crisis shares became very cheap, and many millionaires took the opportunity to buy. Given that several indices are hitting all-time highs, the return on the money the rich invested is tremendous.
Meanwhile, in emerging markets and developing countries, the main creators of wealth are economic growth and saving, along with returns from investing in the corporate debt of expanding companies. Many countries, such as Singapore, are also benefiting and growing economically thanks to inflows of capital from offshore wealth belonging to wealthy Europeans, Americans and Asians.
Who said a crisis doesn’t also mean opportunities?
Further reading
- Which portfolio diversification is the most profitable for financial success
- 5 steps to getting rich, by Charlie Munger, Warren Buffett’s right-hand man
Featured image: Basile Morin, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
