The rich are getting richer. This is confirmed by Allianz’s “Global Wealth Report”, which analyzes the financial assets and debt of private households in almost 60 countries. Global financial assets totaled 233 trillion euros in 2021 and, at 10.4 percent, grew double-digit for the third time in a row. The richest 1 percent of the general population owns 42.9 percent of global net wealth, while the top 10 percent of the wealthy control 86 percent. “The super-rich are getting richer,” says Arne Holzhausen, head of Insurance & Wealth Markets at Allianz. The distribution has become more unfair because the emerging markets have not caught up since 2017. Due to the looming global recession and high inflation rates, “the world will remain an unequal place for a very long time,” said Holzhausen.
The aid organization Oxfam came to the conclusion in the spring that billionaires benefited the most during the crisis years. Their number has increased by more than 570 to 2668 people since 2020. This group shares a fortune of $12.7 trillion.
In the Allianz ranking of the richest companies, the USA is at the top with average per capita net wealth of EUR 259,000, followed by Switzerland with EUR 237,000 and Denmark with EUR 183,000. With an average net worth of its citizens of €69,000, Germany ranks 18th, just behind Italy and France.
The average income is comparatively high because the wealth of the top rich has a major impact on the calculation. For comparison: The global median (central value) of per capita wealth is 1600 euros. This means: 50 percent of the world’s population owns more and the other half owns less than 1600 euros.
Experts expect global financial assets to decline by more than two percent in 2022. That would be the first notable loss of wealth since the financial crisis of 2008. In real terms – taking inflation into account – households could lose a tenth of their wealth. In contrast to the financial crisis, which was followed by a relatively quick recovery, this time the medium-term prospects are poor. “2021 marks the end of an era,” said Ludovic Subran, chief economist at Allianz. “The last three years have been extraordinary, a real windfall for most savers. Not only 2022, but also the coming years will be different,” said Subran. The inflation crisis put the social contract to the test. Politicians are faced with the enormous challenge of overcoming the energy crisis, securing the green transformation and creating growth – while at the same time monetary policy is stepping on the brakes. “There’s no room for error now,” Subran said.
Several such “Wealth Reports” are published every year, written by banks, insurance companies, consulting firms and non-governmental organizations. The results give an impression of the distribution of wealth, they are not exact, after all there is no worldwide microcensus of the rich that would provide precise information about their true wealth. In addition, the rich tend to be reluctant to provide information, and money hidden in offshore companies is difficult to record. So the experts work with surveys, projections and approximate values.