The richie rich countries

The Boston Consulting Group has come out with a list of 15 countries with the highest density of millionaire households, basically the largest number of very rich people. It has some surprises

1 Here’s the major surprise up front. Most people would assume that America has the largest number of millionaire households. Not so. It?s now Singapore. The comparatively tiny island has a population of around five million of which an impressive 17.1% are rated as millionaires. Not just that, Singapore also has the most number of multi-millionaires. According to the BCG report, ten out of every one lakh households in the country have a net worth of $100 million or more. The latest billionaire to make it to the list is the co-founder of Facebook, Eduardo Saverin, who recently gave up his American passport to become a Singapore citizen.

2 The Middle East, thanks to its vast oil reserves, is always high up on the list but it?s really the smaller countries with small populations which are surging ahead of states like Saudi Arabia. Second on the list is Qatar, which has a population of 1.76 million of which 14.3% of households are millionaires. The Emir has a vast personal fortune and owns London?s most valuable property, including Harrods and the US embassy building, as well as major shares in Barclays, Tiffany and Volkswagen. Qatar is also the headquarters for Al Jazeera, the cable news television channel, and has other global investments which include some of the world?s most valuable artworks. As a sign of its growing financial clout, it has won the bid to host the 2022 soccer World Cup.

3 Another Middle East country, Kuwait, is ranked third. Again, its huge oil reserves have brought prosperity to its citizens on a massive scale. It has a population of 2.74 million of which 11.8% are classified as millionaire households. Moreover, six out of every one lakh households are worth $100 million-plus.

4 Small populations seem to be the key to prosperity, as is the case with Switzerland, famous for its banks, watchmakers, chocolates and Roger Federer. The Swiss population totals just 7.8 million but it has a large number of wealthy people, with 9.5% of total households boasting a net worth of more than $1 million. In comparison to its relatively tiny size, one of the smallest in Europe, it has the highest number of households with a net worth of $100 million or more.

5 China?s policy of leaving Hong Kong to do its own thing as a separate entity, which mainly means making money, much like Singapore, has created a popular offshore centre of wealth. The former British colony has a population of seven million of which 8.8% are millionaire households. More importantly, according to the BCG report, it has the most number of billionaires in the world.

6 Despite the dip in its fortunes in recent times, the UAE still manages to produce a high proportion of household millionaires. Slightly over 5% of the households in this country of around eight million people are millionaires.

7 The US, the world?s sole superpower, ranks seventh in the list of wealthiest countries in the world with 4.3% millionaire households out of its total population of 311.6 million. According to the BCG report, private wealth of Americans has shown a decline over the last two years.

8 Here?s another surprise. Israel ranks number eight in the BCG list and 3.6% of its 7.6 million population comprises households with a net worth of over $1 million.

9 Taiwan is emerging as a technological powerhouse and is now one of the most high-tech countries in Asia. That has resulted in 3.2% of its population of 23.2 million becoming millionaire households with five out of every one lakh households having a net worth of $100 million or more.

10 Bahrain has positioned itself as a global financial centre, and that has resulted in a rise in the number of millionaires; 3.2% of its tiny population of 1.26 million are millionaires.

11Once known for its spectacular economic slide, Japan seems to be bouncing back, with 2.9% of its 127.5 million being ranked as millionaire households.

12 Belgium has taken giant strides in industries such as engineering, motor vehicle assembly and transportation equipment, among others. That has led to 2.9% of its population of 10.88 million boasting a net worth of at least $1 million.

13 Neighbouring Netherlands, with 152 millionaire households in its 16.6 million population, ranks as one of the most developed countries in the world.

14 Once called the Hermit of the East, Oman is now opening up and the results are impressive, with 2.5% of its 2.8 million population ranked as millionaire households.

15 Another surprise entry is Ireland, which can count 2.2% millionaire households. The man who leads the list of five Irish billionaires included in the Forbes list of wealthiest is Pune-based Pallonji Mistry, the Parsi construction tycoon who is an Irish citizen. His net worth is estimated at $9.7 billion, which includes being the single-largest shareholder in the Tata group, which his son now heads.