Soaring stocks created 2 million new millionaires around the world last year

• Ultra-high-net-worth individuals (UHNWIs) now represent just 1% of millionaires but control 35% of all millionaire wealth, driven by privileged access to private markets, pre-IPO investments, and hedge funds unavailable to typical millionaires.
• Millionaires increased stock holdings to 25% of portfolios in 2025 (up from 22% in 2024) while reducing cash positions, reflecting a 'risk on' attitude and fear of missing market gains after three years of double-digit returns.
• Wealthy clients are fragmenting their advisory relationships, with 25% now using 4-6 advisors (double the 2019 rate), while those using a single advisor dropped to 19%, forcing wealth management firms to compete on personalization and specialized services.

Market Summary: Global Millionaire Wealth Surge

Key Findings

The global millionaire population grew 7.9% to 25.3 million in 2025, adding nearly 2 million new millionaires, according to the Capgemini World Wealth Report. Total millionaire wealth increased 8.7% to $98.3 trillion, marking the fastest growth in five years, driven primarily by soaring stock markets.

Wealth Disparity Widens

Ultra-high-net-worth individuals (UHNWIs, $30M+ in investible assets) significantly outpaced standard millionaires ($1M+), with their population growing 9.4% to 250,000 and wealth rising 9.7%. UHNWIs now represent just 1% of millionaires but control 35% of total millionaire wealth. This acceleration stems from privileged access to higher-returning private investments, pre-IPO opportunities, hedge funds, and private markets unavailable to typical millionaires.

Geographic Distribution

The U.S. led growth with 730,000 new millionaires, reaching 8.73 million total, with fortunes increasing nearly $3 trillion to $31.3 trillion. Asia posted strong performance (10.5% wealth growth, 9.4% population growth), reaching 8.3 million millionaires. Korea and Taiwan now drive Asian wealth creation, with Korean stocks surging 76% and Taiwanese semiconductor stocks performing strongly. Europe grew 6.5%, while Latin America (0.3%) and Middle East (-1.4%) lagged.

Portfolio Shifts

Millionaires increased equity allocations to 25% in 2025 from 22% in 2024, reflecting heightened risk appetite. Cash holdings decreased to 24% from 26%, signaling "risk on" positioning after three years of double-digit market gains.

Wealth Management Evolution

Client relationships are fragmenting—25% of millionaires now use 4-6 advisors (double from 2019), while single-advisor usage halved to 19%. Investors increasingly favor specialized firms: roboadvisors for $1M-$5M segment, RIAs for middle tier,