Billionaires, 'moderate millionaires' multiply amid soaring markets

The billionaire ranks are swelling again, and a growing share of everyday Americans are quietly joining the millionaire club – trends that could reshape how advisors think about wealth, inheritance and client segmentation.

A new study from UBS reckons there are now roughly 2,900 billionaires worldwide controlling $15.8 trillion, up from about 2,700 with nearly $14 trillion a year earlier.

Soaring tech valuations, buoyant equity markets and a wave of deal activity helped mint 287 new billionaires over the 12 months through early April, the second-largest annual haul since UBS began tracking the figure in 2015.

“You’ve seen this acceleration of billionaire growth, and it’s actually coming from all areas,” John Mathews, UBS’s head of private-wealth management in the US, told the Wall Street Journal, pointing to fortunes created both through entrepreneurship and inheritance.

A separate count by Altrata found there are now 1,135 billionaires in the US, making up an outsized plurality of the world's total billionaire population.

Despite headlines dominated by artificial intelligence and tech moguls, the latest billionaire crop is spread across software, genetics, restaurants, infrastructure and natural gas. UBS says 2,059 of the world’s 2,919 billionaires are self-made, while 860 inherited their wealth. Over the past four years, 727 people have joined the club, increasing the global total by 27%.

At the same time, the Great Wealth Transfer is making itself felt in the data. UBS reports that 91 people became billionaires via inheritance in the past year, receiving nearly $300 billion. The bank estimates another $5.9 trillion will pass from billionaires to children and spouses over the next 15 years, largely in the US. 

For members of the billion-dollar club, UBS says public stocks remain a favored asset class. A plurality plan to add to equities over the next year, even as more of them look beyond the US for opportunity and consider relocating for lifestyle, tax, and geopolitical reasons.

For advisors focused on mass affluent and upper-middle-market households, the more immediate story may be the rise of what UBS calls "moderate millionaires." A separate UBS analysis estimates the number of people worldwide with between $1 million and $5 million has quadrupled since 2000 to 52 million, with roughly a thousand added each day in the US last year. Many of these clients live and spend like the middle class, even as they cross psychological thresholds that can change how they think about risk, retirement and legacy.

Another study by Northwestern Mutual also suggests reaching the million-dollar mark isn't the status symbol it once was, with just 36% of Americans holding at least $1 million in investable assets counting themselves as "wealthy."

At least part of that can be chalked up to widespread investments in defined contribution plans. As reported by the Journal, Fidelity's platform included 654,000 401(k) millionaires as of the third quarter, the highest level in records going back to the early 2000s. Alight says about 3.2% of more than three million accounts it tracks now top $1 million, roughly double the share at the end of 2022, while T. Rowe Price pegs its share of 401(k) millionaires at 2.6%, up from 1.3%.

Retirement industry leaders credit the rise of 401(k) millionaires to retirement plan investors largely staying the course through inflation, tariff fights and political noise.

“They’re a lot less likely to pull back on that match in times of economic uncertainty,” said Michael Shamrell, vice president of workplace thought leadership at Fidelity. “A lot of workers understand market ups and downs are part of the deal.”