The World Now Has 3,302 Billionaires and They’re Getting Richer

(Bloomberg) — The number of billionaires has jumped almost 13.1% to a record 3,302 in the past year, driven by substantial growth in the US and Asia, according to UBS Group AG.

Billionaires increased their total assets by 25% in the year to April 2026, out-pacing the overall rise in the world’s wealth, Switzerland’s biggest bank said in its Global Wealth Report released Tuesday.

The bank recorded 18 individuals with wealth situated between $50 and $100 billion and a further 19 with assets above $100 billion, 15 of which are based in the US.

The report showed that global personal wealth jumped 10.8% in 2025, its sharpest acceleration since 2017, eclipsing gains of 4.6% in 2024 and 4.3% in 2023. There were nearly a million more millionaires created during the year, with growth across all markets tracked by UBS.

Because the data is measured in dollars, some of the increase is explained by the relative fall in the US currency last year flattering the value of assets held elsewhere.

Despite what UBS described as a “broad uplift in living standards” bolstered by rising non-financial assets such as real estate, the data revealed deepening economic disparity, as median wealth fell in the majority of global markets.

“In countries where there is a lot of participation in the equity market, this is leading to an increase in wealth,” UBS economist James Mazeau said at a media conference.

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