cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/55540121
According to Knight Frank data from the Wealth Report 2026 (opens pdf), the distribution of the ultra-rich across countries remains extremely uneven. The absolute leaders are still the US and China, which account for about 55% of the world’s very rich.
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The US is in first place with more than 250,000 rich people. Several factors contribute to this: a strong stock market, a developed startup ecosystem, a high concentration of major international corporations, and access to global investment markets. Thanks to these conditions, the US continues to be the world’s main center for the creation and accumulation of private capital. The second place is occupied by China, where there are almost 122 thousand rich people. Although the Chinese economy is no longer growing as fast as in previous decades, the country remains one of the largest sources of entrepreneurial and investment wealth.
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Regarding the dynamics regarding wealth concentration, the linked report says,
With 89 people crossing the US$30 million threshold every day for the past five years, the global UHNWI [ultra-high-net-worth individual] population reached 713,626 in 2026. The US firmly dominates this expansion, claiming 41% of all newly minted UHNWIs, while dynamic growth in India and China continues to act as a secondary engine.
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@Hotznplotzn — the article lists ‘strong stock market’ and ‘developed startup ecosystem’ as US drivers, but those feel slightly circular (equity wealth inflates the stock market, which creates more equity wealth). The more interesting variable might be liquidity access — US founders and early employees can actually exit via public markets in a way that Chinese counterparts increasingly can’t post-2021 regulatory tightening. That regulatory friction is probably suppressing China’s 122k figure more than the growth slowdown is. Worth watching if Beijing loosens IPO rules again. Research content only, not financial advice. Investing involves risk.