The United States continued to dominate the global wealth rankings in 2024, adding more than 379,000 new millionaires to bring its total to 23.8 million, according to a new report released by UBS.
The country now accounts for nearly 40% of the world’s millionaire population, reinforcing its position as the leading generator of private wealth globally.
UBS said the US surge was supported by a strong 2024 for Wall Street and a stable dollar through most of the year.
The number of American millionaires rose 1.5% year-on-year, with an average of more than 1,000 new millionaires created each day.
Mainland China retained the second spot, registering a 2.3% rise to 6.3 million millionaires.
Turkey posted the highest percentage increase, with its millionaire population rising 8.4% to 87,000.
Overall, the global number of millionaires rose by more than 684,000 to nearly 60 million, aided largely by rising real estate values.
Dollar volatility and trade uncertainty weigh on 2025 outlook for US wealth creation
Despite the gains in 2024, 2025 has begun on shakier footing.
The US dollar has fallen around 9% so far this year, amid concerns over President Donald Trump’s renewed trade wars and fears of a domestic slowdown.
These developments have triggered volatility in financial markets and left economists cautious.
UBS economist James Mazeau told CNBC it’s too early to say whether US household wealth will grow at a slower rate this year.
A weaker dollar actually lifts wealth in non-dollar countries. The US might not lose wealth in nominal terms, especially if equities recover.
He also noted that US housing prices have remained resilient and stocks could finish 2025 higher than current levels.
“This year could be lower than last year, but it doesn’t mean we’ll have a reversal in fortune and see negative wealth creation,” he said.
I don’t think the engines of growth are dead in the United States — far from it.
Wealth remains concentrated, even among billionaires
While the millionaire class continues to grow, wealth remains heavily concentrated.
UBS found that an estimated 60 million millionaires worldwide hold $226.47 trillion combined, which is nearly half of the world’s global wealth.
Out of these, just 2,860 individuals qualify as billionaires, controlling $15.7 trillion in assets.
The very top 15 centibillionaires, each worth over $100 billion, hold a combined $2.4 trillion.
Even among billionaires, Mazeau said, inequality is notable.
“We do see that there is wealth concentration or, I would say, wealth inequality, even amongst billionaires,” Mazeau said.
He attributed most of the concentration to the outperformance of the tech sector and the rise of “mega tech entrepreneurs.”
Aldo, while the United States accounts for nearly 40% of the world’s millionaires, Luxembourg and Switzerland have a greater density of wealth.
In both nations, more than one in seven adults holds assets worth at least $1 million, according to UBS.
Some regions, including Japan, saw declines in millionaire numbers, with Japan losing 33,000 due to demographic shifts.
Meanwhile, Singapore, Qatar, Greece, and Poland added significantly to their ranks, while billionaire wealth dropped sharply in the Netherlands and Uruguay.
“Everyday millionaires” outpace billionaires in total wealth
UBS emphasized that most of the wealth gains are happening in the middle tiers.
The number of individuals with between $1 million and $5 million—the so-called “everyday millionaires”—has quadrupled since 2000 and now totals about 52 million.
Together, they control more wealth than all the billionaires in the world.
“It is often overlooked how much wealth is rising and going toward the middle of the pack,” said Mazeau.
He added that limited data on those in the $50 million to $1 billion range distorts public perceptions of wealth inequality.
With global wealth expanding and new trends emerging in asset ownership, UBS expects the composition of the world’s wealthy to keep evolving—even if volatility and policy shifts create bumps along the way.
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