World Millionaires Reach Record 23.4 Million – Where Does Africa Stand?

The world saw a record high of 23.4 million millionaires, up 2.6% from 2023. Together, these individuals held approximately $90.47 trillion in wealth, designating a 4.2% increase despite economies facing volatility. This information comes from Capgemini’s global high-net-worth report.

U.S. Stock Market Drives Growth

The United States led the way, adding 562,000 new millionaires, a 7.6% jump—thanks largely to strong performance in American equity markets. Investor excitement around artificial intelligence developments, along with a series of rate cuts, fueled gains on Wall Street.

The biggest surge was among ultra-high-net-worth individuals (those with at least $30 million in investable assets), whose combined wealth in the U.S. climbed by nearly 12%.

Mixed Results Across Asia-Pacific

In the Asia-Pacific region, India and Japan both saw solid growth. India added roughly 20,000 millionaires (a 5.6% rise), while Japan added about 210,000 (also 5.6%). By contrast, China’s count of high-net-worth residents actually fell by 1%.

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Where Does Africa Stand?

Africa remains a small but growing share of the global millionaire population.

• According to Credit Suisse’s Global Wealth Databook 2022, Africa had about 352,000 millionaires as of mid-2021, representing roughly 0.6% of the world’s 62.5 million millionaires.
  
• More recent figures from the 2024 Africa Wealth Report by Hubbis estimate that there were approximately 135,200 high-net-worth individuals (investment assets exceeding $1 million) in early 2024. Hubbis projects a 65% increase in African HNWIs over the next decade, which would bring the number to about 223,000 by 2034.
  
• Capgemini’s World Wealth Report 2024 shows that Africa’s HNWI wealth rose 4.7% in 2023, even though the total HNWI population numbers dipped slightly.
  

In short, Africa accounts for less than 1% of the global total of millionaires today, but its wealthiest segment is expanding rapidly. Economic growth in Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya, and Egypt, coupled with rising fintech and real estate sectors, helps drive this regional increase.