Long-term forecasts place Asia as the region with the fastest-growing wealth but in 2023, North America was the leader, according to a report by Capgemini.
In 2023, North America’s high net worth (HNW) wealth grew 7.2 percent year-on-year to $27.5 trillion while its HNW population rose 7.1 percent to 7.9 million, according to Capgemini Research Institute’s «World Wealth Report 2024».
This made it the fastest-growing region, followed by Asia Pacific which saw its HNW wealth and population increase 4.2 percent to $25.7 trillion and 4.8 percent to 7.4 million, respectively. This moderate growth was partly attributable to mixed returns in equity markets, including an 11 percent decrease in the CSI 300 Index and a 14 percent drop in the Hang Seng Index.
APAC Leaders
Within APAC, India (12.4 percent HNW wealth growth and 7.9 percent HNW population growth) and Australia (12.2 percent and 7.8 percent) were the leaders. The report cited a resilient economy and robust equity performance in the two countries as reasons for the strong increase.
Japan was also highlighted as a bright spot (6.5 percent and 6.4 percent), driven by a cautious central banking stance, a steady flow of foreign investments and earnings from the automotive sector.
Reversed Trend
Globally, HNW wealth and population increased 4.7 percent to $86.8 trillion and 5.1 percent to 22.8 million, respectively, to reach record levels and offset the decline in 2022.
«Macroeconomic uncertainty and geopolitical tensions led to significant declines in HNW individual wealth (-3.6 percent) and population (-3.3 percent) in 2022,» the report said. «However, 2023 brought economic growth and improved fortunes for major investment sectors to reverse the falloff.»
The report covers 71 countries including survey responses from 3,119 HNW individuals (HNWI) from 26 markets, of which over 1,300 are ultra-HNWIs.
