The rich are getting richer. Many Americans struggled to stay afloat as they faced sky-high inflation and soaring housing costs, but billionaires had yet another record year in 2023.
As inequality grows, more people enter the billionaire class. Last year, the global population of billionaires increased by 4%, reaching a new record, according to the 2024 Billionaire Census from data firm Altrata, which uses information from Wealth-X.
That wasn’t the only milestone broken: Billionaires’ wealth soared 9%, reaching a record $12.1 trillion in 2023.
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Where do the rich choose to live? North America has proven to be an especially comfortable place for wealth growth.
The region consolidated itself as “the main billionaire region in the world” in 2023, with one in three billionaires living there. This is partly due to the faster growth of billionaires compared to other regions, with the billionaire population increasing by 9.9%. Still, every other region in the world except Asia has experienced growth in the number of billionaires, which Altrata attributes to China’s volatile stock market.
Focusing further, the United States has the highest number of billionaires. China, Germany, India and the United Kingdom follow. The population of billionaires in the US increased by 10%, reaching 1,050 people. New York remains billionaires’ favorite city, with the largest number of billionaires globally.
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Top 15 cities for billionaires
- Nova York
- Hong Kong
- San Francisco
- London
- Moscow
- Los Angeles
- Beijing
- Singapore
- Shenzhen
- mumbai
- Dubai
- Paris, São Paulo, Istanbul (tied)
- Hangzhou
The ultra-rich get richer
Simply becoming a millionaire is no longer considered exceptional, as wealth has become incredibly concentrated at the top. A group of just 18 people, each worth more than 50 billion dollars, has made consistent gains. Representing just under 1% of billionaires (0.5%), their share of billionaires’ wealth has increased from less than 4% in 2014 to 16% in 2023.
Big cities are the places to work and live, as the top 15 cities account for 28% of billionaires. While cities in the US (New York and Los Angeles) have experienced the largest growth in billionaires, centers in China have faced a loss in billionaire population due to economic challenges.
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