Ultra-rich Indians set to surge by 73% in 5 years

Hyderabad: Despite rising geopolitical tensions and slow growth forecasts, the number of ultra wealthy Indians with a networth of over $30 million is expected to increase by 73 per cent by 2024, a recent survey by property consultant Knight Frank revealed.

According to the study, the number of ultra high networth individuals (UHNWIs) in India is expected to almost double to 10,354 from 5,986 in 2019. "The growth in India's UHNIs is expected to be on the back of the growth prediction of the economy with GDP touted to reach the seven per cent mark by 2022. Despite the current slowdown in the economy, global economic pundits see strong long-term economic growth," its Chairman and MD Shishir Baijal said.

The report stated that by 2024, Asia will be the world's second largest wealth hub outperforming Europe, with a five-year growth forecast of 44 per cent. Out of the top 20 fastest growing countries presented in the report, six are located in Asia - led by India (73 per cent growth), five are in Europe – led by Sweden (47 per cent growth) – and three are in Africa, led by Egypt (66 per cent growth).

The wealth sizing model built by Knight Frank shows that within Asia itself, India is projected to lead the growth in UHNWIs, followed by Vietnam (64 per cent growth), China (58 per cent growth) and Indonesia (57 per cent growth).

"However, even after such a steep rise, it will reach only half the size of North America's UHNWI population, which is predicted to increase by 22 per cent over the same period," the report said.

Baijal further said that India's economic advantage is its large and growing consumer base, which helps in general wealth creation.

"As India enters the 30th year of its liberal economic and trade policy since 1991, the country has also become an important market for global products and services. It appeared at some point in time that India was skipping the manufacturing generation of economic growth moving straight to services, we now see the country rising in favour as a manufacturing destination for global corporations," he added.

Commenting on the report findings, Liam Bailey, Global Head of Research at Knight Frank said, "It's exciting to see how wealth is developing across Asia and, with the number of ultra-wealthy in India, Vietnam, China and Malaysia outpacing many other markets over the nextfive years, it will be interesting to see how this impacts the global property market."