Indian Billionaires Increase Four Fold Over Last Decade

The latest report from Knight Frank Wealth analysis reveals that the number of billionaires as well as Ultra-High Net-Worth Individuals (UHNIs) in India has risen by over 300 percent in the last 10 years.

According to the Knight Frank Global Wealth Report 2016, the count of billionaires (net-worth equal to or exceeding $1billion) went up 333 percent or 4 times in the last 10 years, going from 18 in 2006 to 78 in 2016.

The number of UHNIs, who are classified as individuals with over $30 million in net-worth, went up by 340 percent in the last decade and now stands at 6,020 in 2016.

Mumbai leads the country with 1,094 UHNIs, followed by Delhi which has 545.

Nicholas Holt, Head of Research for Asia Pacific, Knight Frank said that the strength of the Indian economy will foster growth opportunities resulting in the potential of doubling the number of UHNIs in the next decade. He added that the growth in wealth will occur across all wealth brackets including the UHNI and it will be the primary reason for the demand in prime residential property in major Indian cities.

Based on the global UHNI ranking, India holds the 6th position in a list of 91 countries and is expected to rise to the 4th position by 2025 after USA, China and UK. Early this year the PwC released a report expecting India to be a “star performer” among the emerging markets with a 7.7 percent growth in 2016.

In a statement, Samantak Das, Chief Economist & National Director – Research, Knight Frank India said,

Even though the rate of growth in the number of Indian UHNWIs (wealthy Indians) over the next ten years in India will slow down, it will still be much higher than the global average. Globally, India’s share of UHNWI population, which was one percent in 2005, will continue to grow and is expected to increase to five per cent in 2025.

This growth will result in Mumbai having 2,243 UHNIs and Delhi will have 1,128.Das has stated that for wealthy Indians, the most preferred class of assets for investments has been financial instruments. Real estate is another popular segment, where THE commercial sector is favoured over residential segment. This trend is likely to continue in the future.

Wealthy Indians own more number of residential properties than the global average. It is estimated that wealthy Indians own over 4 properties which is the highest in the world, whereas the global average is around 3.7.

The report has stated that in the last 10 years, close to 31 percent of Indian UHNIs have increased their focus on residential real estate for investment while 47 percent have allocated more to the commercial property sector.

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