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While interest rates remain higher, the stock rebound at the end of 2023 combined with trillions of dollars in government spending and stimulus continues to power the U.S. wealth machine.
The fortunes at the very top of the wealth ladder are growing fastest. The number of Americans worth $30 million or more grew 7.5% in 2023, to 100,000, while their fortunes surged to $7.4 trillion.
Globally, ultra-high net worth individuals account for 1% of the millionaire population but now hold 34% of its total wealth, showing the increasing concentration of wealth even among the wealthy.
The big question is whether the wealth boom of the past decade, initially fueled by low interest rates and liquidity, and more recently by Covid-19 pandemic stimulus and artificial intelligence, can continue. Global conflicts, elections, interest rates and a potential economic slowdown could all slow the pace of wealth creation, said Elias Ghanem, global head of the Capgemini Research Institute for Financial Services.
“The last 10 years were exceptional,” Ghanem said. “We now have inflation, a potential recession and geopolitical problems and elections. The environment is completely different.”
Indeed, globally, the wealth picture looks more mixed than in the U.S. The number of millionaires worldwide grew 5.1% last year, to 22.8 million, according to the report. Their combined fortunes grew to a record $86.8 trillion.
