Global wealth continues to grow. Here’s how Canada’s millionaires stack up

In Canada, median wealth per adult ballooned by nearly 10 per cent in local currency in 2024. Photo by Getty Images/iStockphoto

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The world is getting wealthier, with the ranks of those with US$1 million or more continuing to expand, according to a recent report from Swiss financial services firm UBS Group AG.

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In Canada, median wealth per adult ballooned by nearly 10 per cent in local currency in 2024, the report stated.

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Real estate appreciation and a robust stock market last year are among the factors contributing to this, said Josh Sheluk, portfolio manager at Verecan Capital Management.

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“I think as long as you’re having growth of economies globally, you’re going to see spillover effects to Canada and, quite frankly, to most regions of the world,” Sheluk said. “I think we’re well positioned here in Canada to benefit.”

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Global wealth climbed 4.6 per cent from 2023 to 2024, following a rise of 4.2 per cent rise reported in 2023.

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In fact, UBS said total wealth has climbed at a compound annual growth rate of 3.4 per cent since 2000.

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Canada held a 2.5 per cent slice of global personal wealth in 2024, coming after France (3.3 per cent), India (3.4 per cent), Germany and the United Kingdom (3.8 per cent), Japan (4.5 per cent), China (20 per cent) and the United States (35 per cent), the UBS report found.

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The country also ranked No. Nine among the top countries for median wealth at US$151,910 per adult, and eleventh for average wealth at US$365,953 per adult. These figures are far more disparate for the U.S., which fell behind at 15th place for median wealth at $124,041 per adult, but boasted second place for average wealth at US$620,654 per adult.

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The numbers of those who hold wealth are rising as well.

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The world added more than 680,000 new millionaires in U.S. dollars in 2024 (a 1.2 per cent increase) and UBS predicted more than five million more will join these ranks by 2029. Canada made up a significant portion of that number, adding 117,000 U.S.-dollar millionaires last year (an uptick of 5.4 per cent), taking its total to about 2.1 million USD millionaires.

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However, having $1 million in investable assets no longer signifies super affluence.

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“We may need to redefine what threshold is being considered wealthy,” Sheluk said. “I think there are many people in Canada that have $1 million in net wealth and don’t feel very wealthy.”

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In fact, the UBS report noted the number of “everyday millionaires” (with assets of US$1 million to US$5 million) has more than quadrupled globally since 2000 to about 52 million in 2024. The researchers highlighted significant growth in real estate values driving this growth.

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In comparison, the world’s billionaires have increased only slightly to 2,891, with the majority boasting a fortune between US$1 and US$49 billion.

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The great wealth transfer over the next 20-25 years is also expected to produce shifts in wealth dynamics. More than US$83 trillion is projected to be transferred, with US$9 trillion moving horizontally, between spouses, and US$74 trillion passing between generations.