If you want to rub shoulders with the rich, you need to move to London, which is home to the most ultra-wealthy individuals in the world, according to a new report.
London has a population of almost 4,500 people with a fortune of at least $30 million in disposable cash.
Competing for London’s crown are Singapore, where 3,227 ultra-wealthy live – an increase of 1,752 in 12 months; Hong Kong, with 2,690 – an increase of 1,251 in a year – and New York with 3,008, a rise of 1,013 in the year.
Other cities with rising fortunes are Shanghai and Tokyo, while some European favourites are losing favour -such as Geneva.
The expectation for the next decade is that London well remain the favourite destination for the very wealthy, which will help maintain prime property prices in the British capital.
Shifting fortunes
But a shift in fortunes from the west to east will continue as the number of wealthy grows by 54% mainly fuelled by improving incomes in the Asia Pacific.
The report suggests the rest of the world will decline as wealth increases by 91% in the Asia Pacific.
Looking at millionaires, New York is expected to rise as the home to more than 520,000 in the next 10 years, with another 500,000 living in Tokyo, which will vie with the Big Apple.
But other Asia Pacific cities will dominate the rankings, including Mumbai, Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Singapore and even places such as Ho Chi Minh |City, Djakarta breaking through.
Tips for the future
“The research offers a single constant – the rise of the wealthy in the Asia Pacific,” said the Knight Frank report.
“These powerhouse cities will see a huge rise in the numbers of millionaires and multi-millionaires. Many European cities will go into decline, but London and New York will continue to stand toe to toe as the most important global cities for the ultra-wealthy.”
The report suggests economic and political stability has a lot to do with attracting the wealthy to live.
Other cities tipped to have a bright future include Belgrade, Panama City, Addis Ababa and Yangon (Myanmar).
