Good news: more ‘super’ multimillionaires – those worth in excess of $30 million – have made London their home in the past year a new survey finds. Alec Marsh reports
Roll up, roll up… forget the Brexit gloom, London continued to enjoy its position as the city with most multimillionaires in the world this year, with the number of resident individuals worth in excess of $30 million (or 13,000 Bitcoin if you prefer) reaching a new high.
More than that London actually pulled away from the elite pack of top global cities favoured by the super wealthy in numbers of multimillionaire residents, according to the research by verdict.co.uk and GlobalData WealthInsight.
The number of Londoners with net assets of $30 million or more, excluding their first home, jumped 3.4 per cent on last year, reaching a total of 4,549, up from 4,400 in 2016. At its most conservative, these individuals are estimated to be worth shy under $140 billion, similar to the GDP of a Qatar or Algerian-sized economy or more than the market cap of a company like Unilever or IBM.
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The great news for those worried about the possible impact of the Brexit vote was that the UK capital extended its lead over other world cities favoured by the super-rich in the last year. Second placed Tokyo now has 3,611 super millionaires, a rise of 2.2 per cent in the year. Third placed Singapore, meanwhile, saw its total of top millionaires rise by 3.1 per cent to 3,212.
Other top ten cities were fourth-placed New York, which saw its tally rise by 2.1 per cent to 3,093, followed by Hong Kong, which has faired so well seeing its population of super millionaires fall by 2.4 per cent to 2,722. Frankfurt and Paris were in sixth and seventh place respectively, followed by Osaka, Beijing and Seoul.
‘In the fourth year of this study we see London’s appeal undiminished to millionaires both at home and abroad,’ says Oliver Williams, from Wealth Insight. ‘Growth in the city’s economy has defied Brexit in creating new wealth and London draws more affluent from overseas attracted by friendly business laws, quality of life and all the services a multi-millionaire could need.’
While some might complain about the traffic jams of Lamborghinis on Knightsbridge, or of failing to get into favourite restaurants, the brutal economic truth is that each and every one of these men and women is good news for the London and City economy: they’re dining out, employing builders, nannies, sending their children to our schools and universities — and, of course, engaging wealth managers of every stripe to protect and grow their wealth, too.
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The research gives whichever government wins on June 8, another 4,549 reasons why they can go into the Brexit negotiations, which follow hard on the heels of the election, with their heads held high. More than ever, London’s continued dominance as a global centre of wealth and finance underscores its supreme importance to the EU.
The world’s millionaires are voting with their feet and Brussels would be wise to listen.
Alec Marsh is editor of Spear’s
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