The U.S. minted 1,000 new millionaires each day last year, according to a new report from investment bank UBS.
The nation outpaced other countries in wealth growth during 2024, with more than 379,000 people becoming U.S. dollar millionaires for the first time, according to UBS’ annual Global Wealth Report, which analyzed individual wealth across 56 markets.
U.S. residents accounted for more than half of all new millionaires created across the globe in 2024. The surge in American millionaires was bolstered by robust stock market returns, with the S&P 500 jumping more than 23% last year.
“Wealth growth was tilted strongly towards North America, driven by a stable U.S. dollar and upbeat financial markets,” UBS analysts wrote in the report.
Globally, a total of 680,000 people became new millionaires in 2024, a 1.2% uptick compared to the year prior.
UBS expects that number to keep growing over the next five years. By 2029, the bank projects an additional 5.34 million people will see their net worths reach at least $1 million.
Despite the growing share of millionaires, most Americans’ wealth falls well short of seven figures. At the end of 2024, in the Americas, the average wealth per adult was around $312,000, according to the report.
Personal wealth
Total global personal wealth rose 4.6% worldwide last year, driven by a greater than 11% increase in the Americas, UBS said.
“Thus, the particularly strong outperformance of financial markets in the United States in 2024, coupled with a stable currency, is what brought about the region’s rather unilateral performance measured in USD, even though financial markets were generally upbeat in most other parts of the world, too,” UBS said in the report.
Combining the new millionaires with the ranks of those already in the seven-figure club, the Americas accounted for nearly 40% — or about 24 million — of the world’s millionaires in 2024, followed by Asia-Pacific (36%), and Europe, the Middle East and Africa (25%).
The report uses net worth and wealth interchangeably, measured by the value of an individual’s financial assets and real assets, including housing, but subtracting their debts.
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