00:0098 Trillion Dollars of Wealth Globally
00:02Ultra High Net Worth Individuals
00:04Only represent 1% of the population
00:06But they retain 35%
00:08Of that total wealth
00:15Hello and welcome to The Big Question
00:17The series from Euronews
00:19Where we dive deep into the world
00:21Of business and finance
00:22I'm Stefan Grobel
00:24And today I'm joined by Gareth Wilson
00:26Executive Vice President at Capgemini
00:29Thanks for coming on
00:30Great to have you here
00:31Thank you Stefan
00:32Great to be with you for today's Big Question
00:34Now Gareth, let's dive straight in
00:37Capgemini recently published
00:38Their World Wealth Report
00:40Looking at wealth distribution
00:42Millionaire populations
00:44And the behaviours of high net worth individuals
00:48So, tell us what's in the report
00:51What are the most important takeaways
00:52Well Stefan, this is actually the 30th edition
00:56Of our Capgemini World Wealth Report
00:58And probably one of the key takeaways
01:01Is that that absolute wealth
01:04And the number of individuals
01:06Who retain that wealth continues to grow
01:09I think we estimate that there's something
01:11Like 98 trillion dollars of wealth globally
01:14And that's held by something like
01:1525 million individuals
01:17But when we look at year 2025 versus 2024
01:22We've seen that population grow
01:24At the fastest rate over five years
01:27So key messages are
01:28Absolute wealth is growing
01:30The number of high net worth individuals is growing
01:33And actually we see that trend globally
01:42Can you just quantify for us
01:44What makes a high net worth individual
01:48So we define a high net worth individual
01:51Stefan
01:51As an individual who has investable assets
01:54Of greater than a million dollars
01:56Excluding their home
01:57There are categories within that
01:59So if you've got between one and five million dollars
02:02We describe you as a millionaire next door
02:04Between five and thirty million dollars
02:07We describe you as a mid-tier millionaire
02:10And if you've got investable assets
02:12Of greater than thirty million dollars
02:14You're an ultra high net worth individual
02:17This is very much the kind of apex of the pyramid
02:20As it were, Stefan
02:21And those ultra high net worth individuals
02:24Only represent something like one percent of the population
02:27But they retain something like 35 percent of that total wealth
02:31That is an amazing number
02:33And what about these ultra high net worth individuals
02:36Are they getting richer?
02:37They certainly are
02:39You know, we've seen some continued growth
02:44In terms of their absolute wealth
02:47I think at a global level
02:48We've seen growth of something like nine percent
02:51In 2025 versus 2024
02:54We've also seen a little bit of a shift
02:57In terms of some of the elements of that wealth, Stefan
03:00We've seen a move towards equities
03:04So stocks and shares
03:06We've seen a move towards fixed income assets
03:10And we've seen probably a reduction
03:12In terms of the cash holdings
03:14And that's an interesting point
03:15Because I think we view cash as a relatively conservative asset class
03:20And we've seen these high net worth individuals
03:22Move their investments to higher returns
03:25But also potentially higher risk
03:28Equities, stocks and shares
03:30So they're now more millionaires
03:32And they're getting richer
03:34What does that mean for the rest of us?
03:36Well, I think, you know, our focus has very much been on that high net worth individual population
03:41And I think because of their assets and their appetite for investment
03:46This should generate growth
03:49This should generate economic value across the globe
03:52I think we see that in terms of how some of the stock markets have responded
03:59That period, 25 versus 24, we saw significant growth across many markets
04:05And that's generating the wealth
04:07But it's also generating the opportunity for reinvestment
04:10And I think this investment should benefit the global economy
04:14And the high net worth individuals represent a very significant element in that opportunity
04:20I assume that this wealth isn't evenly spread across the world
04:26Tell us about the geographic regions that have seen a boom, for instance
04:31In the context of the overall trend being positive
04:34I think the US, we've seen very material growth
04:38I think the US has something now like 8.7 million high net worth individuals
04:42And that's grown at something like 9%
04:45When we look at here in Europe
04:47The total number of high net worth individuals is circa 6 million
04:52And we have something that's seen growth in the region of 6%
04:56So we've seen a little bit of a difference between the US and Europe
04:59The one exception this year was the Middle East
05:02We saw a decline in terms of a high net worth individual growth of negative 2%
05:08And Stefan, for me, when we look at that in detail
05:10That's probably more related to the oil price reduction in the Middle East
05:15But the US has grown very significantly
05:17We have seen growth in Europe
05:19And Asia-Pacific continues to be positive
05:21Is there a particular reason why the US is growing
05:25And why Americans are accumulating more wealth?
05:28I suppose there's a number of factors here, Stefan
05:30I think, you know, scale would be one
05:32You know, the absolute population, as I say
05:35There's 8.7 million high net worth individuals in the US
05:39Their population is something like four times as big as our largest country here in Europe
05:43I think their financial markets and their financial system
05:47Incredibly mature and also quite attractive
05:50So we've seen a number of companies list on the New York Stock Exchange
05:55And take advantage of the kind of financial markets in the US
05:58I think SpaceX probably being one of the most recent examples on that basis
06:03We've also seen tech innovation
06:06Silicon Valley, the West Coast
06:08I think for a number of years now has been recognized as a hub
06:13A hotbed for innovation
06:14A hotbed for technology advancement, technology investment
06:18And in the current environment with AI being a very hot topic, Stefan
06:23That continues to create a very conducive environment for investors
06:29And therefore a positive environment for these high net worth individuals
06:33You know, to continue to prosper
06:35Any hot spots in Europe?
06:38Now, we are here in Brussels
06:39And I think, you know, when we look at Belgium as a country
06:42I think their high net worth individual growth was something like 9% last year
06:47Okay
06:47Which is good
06:48Germany, where you're from, Stefan
06:50Actually, even more positive at double digit
06:53I think Germany grew somewhere in the region of 11% in our Capgemini World Wealth Report
06:59This data, what does that tell you about the conditions in Europe?
07:03The environment in terms of what the European Central Bank has done with regard to interest rates
07:09Has definitely created some more stability to enable investment
07:13But we've also seen significant focus on innovation
07:17Whether it be sectors like defense
07:19Which is obviously, for differing reasons, Stefan
07:22Has seen a kind of a significant increase in demand
07:26Because of some of the geopolitical challenges that we've seen
07:29And some of the wars we've seen around the world
07:30But that is also generating growth within the local economies
07:35It's generating equity performance
07:38And ultimately contributing to this growth within the high net worth individuals
07:42All right, Gareth Wilson, the executive vice president at Capgemini
07:46Thank you for breaking it all down for us
07:48Thank you, Stefan
07:50Thank you, Stefan
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