North American Millionaires Regain Top Spot, Report Finds
By Doug Alexander & Margaret Collins - Jun 18, 2013 12:06 PM ET
North America reclaimed the top spot with the most millionaires last year as the world’s ultra-rich led the way in raising global wealth to a record high, according to a report by Cap Gemini SA and Royal Bank of Canada.
People in North America with at least $1 million in investable assets climbed 11.5 percent to 3.73 million in 2012
, regaining the No. 1 ranking after being overtaken in 2011 by the Asia-Pacific region, according to today’s 17th annual World Wealth Report. High-net-worth individuals in Asia-Pacific increased 9.4 percent to 3.68 million.
The combined wealth of the world’s millionaires rose 10 percent to a record $46.2 trillion last year,
after declining 1.7 percent in 2011. North America remained the richest region with $12.7 trillion of high-net-worth assets, compared with $12 trillion in Asia-Pacific, according to the study.
“Both the U.S. and Canada benefited from marginal GDP growth as well as equity and real estate markets,� Jean Lassignardie, chief sales and marketing officer for Paris-based Capgemini Global Financial Services, said at a press conference in New York. Still, Asia-Pacific’s total wealth increased 12.2 percent, outpacing North America’s 11.7 percent growth, he said.
The increase in wealth was led by the super-rich, those with at least $30 million to invest, whose assets and numbers rose by about 11 percent following declines in 2011, according to the report.
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