The number of the ultra wealthy population in the world dropped by 6%, to 392,410, in the first half of 2022, Altrata’s report shows.
Altrata, the world’s leading company for data intelligence on the rich and powerful, does in-depth research on the ultra high net worth (UHNW) population. It is made up of wealthy people with a net worth of more than $30 million each.
The drop is a big change from 2021 and the first drop in UNHW numbers since 2018. The war in Ukraine sent shockwaves through the global economy, which hurt wealth portfolios.
After reaching all-time highs in the past few years, the total net worth fell by 11% to $41.8trn.
North America’s richest hit the most
In H1 2022, North America had the biggest drop of any area. In the first half of 2022, the number of UHNW people in the world’s largest ultra-wealthy region dropped by almost 10%, to 134,530. This was a sharp contrast to the strong growth seen in 2019–2021. Asia saw a 3.9% drop in the number of UHNW people, which was less than North America and Europe. This helped Asia keep its place as the second-largest UHNW region.
In the first half of 2022, the number of UHNW people in Europe fell by 6.9%, to 100,370. Europe is the third-largest region of ultra wealthy population in the world. This was the second biggest drop after North America. Europe’s share of the world’s ultra-rich fell to 25.6%, which is four points less than Asia’s (from a near-equivalent share in 2019). The total amount of money people own fell by 11.5%, to $10.6trn.
As winter lockdowns were lifted, there was a big jump in consumer-facing services like hotels and travel, which helped the real-world economy of the area. But the Russian invasion of Ukraine had a big effect on market sentiment. This was because of the region’s heavy reliance on Russian energy imports, the wider geopolitical effects of the conflict, and the quick spread of inflationary shocks, mostly from rising energy and food prices.
Only in China the number of ultra wealthy went up
China was the only big wealth market where the number of UHNW people went up. Over H1 2022, the number of ultra wealthy people in the world’s second-largest UHNW country went up by 2.3%. The US was one of three countries in the top ten to see a drop of more than 10%. The other two were Japan and France. Hong Kong’s population of ultra-high-net-worth (UHNW) people grew a little bit more than New York’s, but both cities saw their UHNW populations fall.
Hong Kong and New York are the most wealthy cities in the world. Asia’s largest financial center lead over New York, which was in second place, grew a little bit, even though the number of UHNW people in both cities went down. In general, the ultra wealthy population in Hong Kong was less affected by the severe drop in the stock market than the ultra-rich in the US. Hong Kong and New York have about twice as many UHNW people as Los Angeles, which is in third place.
Most of the cities on the list are in the US, and there are none from China or Germany. The US is the largest UHNW market in the world, so it makes sense that six of the top 10 cities and four of the next five are in the US. Two cities each are in Europe and Asia. China and Germany, which are the second and third largest UHNW markets in the world, don’t have any city representation. This is because their private wealth is spread out more evenly across domestic urban centers than in most other leading UHNW markets.
The proportion of ultra wealthy women is still small, but rising
In terms of the demographics, only 11% of ultra wealthy population are women, but that number is slowly rising. On average, UHNW women are much more likely to have gotten at least some of their wealth from an inheritance. They are also more likely to be interested in or working directly in philanthropy. The distribution of assets is also different between ultra wealthy women and men. Real estate and luxury goods make up 13% of all assets for UHNW women, which is three times more than for UHNW men.
Ultra-rich women are more interested in art and jewelry than their male counterparts when it comes to luxury items. Assuming that there are the same number of ultra-rich men and women (so that we can compare), women own luxury watches and jewelry 70 out of every 100 times, and they own high-end art a little more often than men. Men with a lot of money own jets and yachts far more often than women do. UHNW men and women are just as likely to own a second home worth more than $5 million.
On average, ultra-rich women in the US give more money to politics than ultra-rich men do. Between 2018 and 2021, each ultra-rich woman gave an average of $134,100, while each ultra-rich man gave an average of $125,000. Even though the average gift given by a woman is smaller, they give more often.
