India Has 4th Largest Population of Millionaires in Asia Pacific: Report

India has bagged the fourth spot in the list of countries with largest population of millionaires in the Asia Pacific region. The country was shown to have about 219,000 ultra-rich individuals with a combined wealth of $877 billion, according to the 2017 Asia Pacific Wealth Report (APWR) released on Nov. 7 by Capgemini.

India contributes 4 per cent in terms of individual market share in High Net Worth Individuals (HNWI) population growth in the APAC (Asia Pacific) region.

HNWIs are individuals with investible assets of $1 million or more. They exclude primary residence, collectibles, consumables, and consumer durables. According to the report, India’s HNWI population saw a surge in 2015-16 by 9.5 per cent. It surpassed the average annual growth rate of 7.4 per cent of APAC.

At the fag end of 2016, Japan stood first with 2,891,000 millionaires, followed by China with 1,129,000 HNWIs. Australia was at the third place with 255,000 persons falling in the category. The report noted that India’s HNWI growth was ahead of China and Japan, which registered 9.1 per cent and 6.3 per cent growth, respectively, for the same period.

India also saw a double-digit growth of 10 per cent for the period 2015-2016 in HNWI wealth — a leap in comparison to annual growth rate of 8.2 per cent.

“After a sedate HNWI wealth expansion of 1.6 percent in 2015, India posted double digit HNWI wealth growth of 10 percent in 2016. This jump was propelled mainly by a rebound in its equity markets and real estate…,” the report said.

“In India, investor sentiment has remained cautiously confident in the wake of the election of the reformist Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the unannounced demonetization initiative challenges in dealing with significant issues such as unemployment, and the ongoing use of retrospective tax grabs on foreign multi-nationals may have caused some trepidation,” it added.

According to the report, 41 per cent of Indian HNWI’s financial assets were held outside the home market for the July-September period of this financial year. It said: “In terms of geographic spread of asset allocation, Indian HNWI’s are largely holding their assets in Singapore (22.2 per cent) Dubai (14.4 per cent) and London (13.4 per cent).”

The Asia-Pacific region remains dominant in the high net worth individual population and wealth by being on track to surpass $40 trillion in HNWI wealth by 2025. The region is a global leader in HNWI population and wealth.

The Asia-Pacific Wealth Report from Capgemini tracks HNWIs in the Asia-Pacific region, their wealth, and the global and economic conditions that drive change in the wealth management industry.