The 2015 Knight Frank Global Wealth Report shows which nations are home to the most ultra high net worth individuals (UHNWI).
According to Knight Frank’s report, in 2014, South Africa was home to 616 UHNWIs – people worth more than US$30 million – the highest number on the continent, ahead of Egypt (276), Nigeria (210) and Kenya (115).
By 2024, this number is expected to grow by almost 50% to a total of 903 individuals – while Nigeria is expected to surpass Egypt, with 399 UHNWI individuals in the next decade.
South Africa also leads other nations in Africa when it comes to centa-millionaires (individuals worth over US$100 million – R1.2 billion) and billionaires, with 174 and 8 of these individuals in the country, respectively.
Top 10 African countries for multi-millionaires (US$30 million+)
| # | Country | 2004 | 2014 | 2024 | 2004-2014 Growth | 2014-2024 Growth |
| 36 | South Africa | 300 | 616 | 903 | 105% | 47% |
| 50 | Egypt | 101 | 276 | 387 | 173% | 40% |
| 56 | Nigeria | 63 | 210 | 399 | 233% | 90% |
| 67 | Kenya | 56 | 115 | 209 | 105% | 82% |
| 74 | Tanzania | 40 | 78 | 156 | 95% | 100% |
| 75 | Angola | 12 | 72 | 112 | 500% | 56% |
| 79 | Tunisia | 37 | 57 | 88 | 54% | 54% |
| 83 | Libya | 16 | 42 | 66 | 163% | 57% |
| 85 | Morocco | 23 | 41 | 64 | 78% | 56% |
| 88 | Ethiopia | 9 | 36 | 72 | 300% | 100% |
Forbes recently listed seven South African billionaires in its annual billionaire’s list. However, Desmond Sacco dropped off the list between the time of Knight Frank and Forbes’ respective reports.
In a Global Cities survey conducted by Knight Frank, UHNWIs identified 40 global cities which hold the most value for wealthy people.
In the survey findings only two African cities made the cut – and both in South Africa. Johannesburg was ranked 28th and Cape Town was ranked 36th.
Specifically, Johannesburg has become an increasingly popular destination for prime industrial property, with larger areas of the city’s industrial zones being bought up by private Chinese investors.
“There have also been several trophy purchases, including a prominent Sandton skyscraper as well as several notable wine farms in the Western Cape region,” the report said.
The Cape still offers the best value for luxury property across the globe, the report shows, with US$1 million being able to purchase up to 204 square metres of luxury property.
This is some distance ahead of the second best value proposition, Dubai, which offers 145 square metres for the same price.
Global wealth
Looking at the global distribution of the super-wealthy. South Africa is ranked 36th in terms of the number of UHNWIs in the country.
The United States is the world’s biggest UHNWI nation with 40,581 individuals calling it home, followed by Japan (16,703 individuals), Germany (11,679 individuals), the UK (10,547 individuals) and China (7,905 individuals) rounding out the top 5.
China is has shown massive growth in its number of wealthy individuals (386%) over the past decade, to move up in to the top 5. The country is expected to move past the UK to be the world’s number four by 2024.
According to Knight Frank, there are 172,850 UHNWIs worldwide (up 3% from 2013), who hold a combined US$20.8 trillion in wealth (approximately US$1.2 billion per person).
Top 10 countries for multi-millionaires
| # | Country | 2004 | 2014 | 2024 | 2004-2014 Growth | 2014-2024 Growth |
| 1 | USA | 30 503 | 40 581 | 50 767 | 33% | 25% |
| 2 | Japan | 12 186 | 16 703 | 19 916 | 37% | 19% |
| 3 | Germany | 8 126 | 11 679 | 14 481 | 44% | 24% |
| 4 | UK | 8 431 | 10 547 | 13 176 | 25% | 25% |
| 5 | China | 1 721 | 8 366 | 15 681 | 386% | 87% |
| 6 | Canada | 2 275 | 4 341 | 5 392 | 91% | 24% |
| 7 | Switzerland | 2 479 | 4 328 | 5 295 | 75% | 22% |
| 8 | Brazil | 1 146 | 4 218 | 6 278 | 268% | 49% |
| 9 | France | 2 774 | 3 865 | 4 424 | 39% | 14% |
| 10 | Italy | 2 936 | 3 717 | 4 468 | 27% | 20% |