Indians are getting richer faster than residents of any other major economy.
Private wealth in the country has been rising spectacularly. It grew 98% between 2008 and 2018 and is expected to grow even faster in the next 10 years, according to a recent report by the Mauritius-based AfrAsia Bank and the South Africa-based market research firm New World Wealth.
By 2028, the total private wealth held by Indians will be around $23 trillion (Rs1,590 lakh crore), the report estimates. This will be more than double the total wealth held by individuals in the UK and Germany then.
The report credits the “large number of entrepreneurs, competitive wages, and English-speaking” population in India for this rise. It also forecasts high growth in the country’s financial services, IT, business process outsourcing, real estate, healthcare, and media industries.
Inequality
The high growth in India’s wealth, though, does not mean a proportionate rise in all Indians’ net assets.
Among the countries with high total private wealth, India has the greatest share of this wealth owned by millionaires, while Japan has the lowest.
Indian millionaires are also leaving the country in large numbers. Australia, the US, and Canada have become the favourite new homes for rich people from around the world.
However, “the outflows of high net-worth individuals (from China and India) are not particularly concerning as they are still producing far more high net-worth individuals than they are losing,” the report says. “Once the standard of living in these countries improves, we expect several wealthy people to move back.”