Knight Frank has launched The Wealth Report, a study on global wealth. This year’s edition shows that the number of ultra-wealthy people (those with net assets of $50 million or more) rose by 10% in 2017 – taking the global population to 129,730, with a combined worth of $26.4 trillion.
The data provided by Wealth-X highlights that the ultra-wealthy population grew at a notably more rapid rate in 2017 than in the previous five years when there was a cumulative 18% increase. This trend in wealth creation mirrors the growing momentum of the global economy since the start of 2017. Solid forecasts for the global economy underpin the wealth specialist’s prediction that the number of individuals with net assets of $50 million or more will have grown by a further 40% by 2022.
When looking at how specific ultra-wealthy populations have fared between 2012 and 2017, the picture is mixed. While the number of people with $50 million or more in net assets rose in North America (+31%), Asia (+37%) and Europe (+10%), there were falls in the remaining five regions, most notably in Latin America and the Caribbean (-22%) and Russia and CIS (-37%).
North America remains the world’s largest wealth region – some 34% of the world’s ultra-wealthy are based there. The country’s ultra-wealthy population increased by a further 5% last year, taking the total number to 44,000.
Europe, however, narrowly lost its second place spot to Asia, despite a 10% rise over the past year in the number of Europeans with $50 million or more, taking its total to 35,180. A 15% rise in Asia’s ultra-wealthy cadre took its population to 35,880, according to Wealth X.
The data also showed that the number of people with $5 million or more in net assets around the world rose by 9% in 2017, with the number of ‘demi-billionaires’, those with $500 million or more in net assets, climbing by 11%.
Romania has 13% more millionaires ($5 million or more in net assets), their number reaching 3,720 individuals in 2017, and forecast for 2022 is a growth to 5,630 individuals.
Wealth-X’s methodology for calculating looks into GDP growth, the performance of stock markets and other investments, as well as wealth distribution trends. Currency also plays a significant role. The wealth data is shown in US dollars, and, as a result, the movement of local currencies against the dollar has also had an impact.
The market for mega deals is changing rapidly. Last year, private investors made up 43% of commercial transactions valued at $1 billion and above, greater than the 31% accounted for by Institutional investors.
The past five years have seen a 300% increase in the total number of $1 billion-plus deals per annum moving from $5 billion in 2012 to a total of $20 billion in 2017.
The Knight Frank Luxury Investment Index (KFLII) has risen in value by 7% over the 12 months to the end of Q4 2017.
The asset leading the index at the end of 2017 was art, which saw outstanding growth of 21% over the course of the year (Art Market Research (AMR) data). This strong performance follows a number of years when art had fallen behind other asset classes such as classic cars and wine. But last year’s record-breaking sale of Leonardo da Vinci’s Salvator Mundi for $450million – surpassing the previous world record by a staggering $271 million – epitomizes art’s recovery.
