KARACHI: Pakistan currently boasts of as many as 415 ultra-high net worth individuals (UHNWIs) super-rich people with a net worth of at least $30m each — after accounting for shares in public and private companies, residential and passion investments, such as art, planes and real estate.
According to recently released Wealth-X and UBS World Ultra Wealth Report 2013, the number of ultra-wealthy individuals in Pakistan increased from 310 in 2012 to 415 in 2013, a surge of 33.9 percent in just one year.
A global UHNWI prospecting, intelligence and wealth due diligence firm, Wealth-X worked with private banks, educational institutions and luxury brands to compile this report with sponsorship from UBS, an international financial services firm.
The report says the collective wealth of Pakistani UHNWIs is currently $50bn, which is up 25 percent from 2012 when their total wealth stood at $40bn. The World Bank estimates Pakistan’s gross domestic product (GDP) at $231.2bn, which means that the wealth of 415 wealthiest Pakistanis is worth more than one-fifth, or 21.6 percent, of the country’s GDP.
In contrast, the total wealth of the world?s UHNWI population is equivalent to 40 percent of global GDP, although such individuals account for approximately one in every 35,000 people.
Out of the 20 countries listed in the Asian category, Pakistan’s rank is 12th in terms of UHNWI population. Interestingly, Pakistan posted the biggest percentage increase in terms of both the UHNWI population as well as total wealth such individuals possess.
For all Asian countries, the UHNWI population and their total wealth increased on average by 3.8 percent and 5.4 percent, respectively. But the percentage increase in the two categories for Pakistan was remarkably high at 33.9 percent and 25 percent, leaving behind all Asian countries, including India (1.6 percent, 1.1 percent), China (-5.1 percent, -4.1 percent) and Bangladesh (5.9 percent, 15.4 percent).
Average wealth of a Pakistani UHNWI in 2013 was $120.5m. In contrast, the global average wealth of an UHNWI in 2013 was $139.4m, which is 15.6 percent higher than the average Pakistani UHNWI. While the United States and Europe grew faster than Asia in the last 12 months, the report forecasts that Asia will have more UHNWIs and wealth than both regions in the next five years.
“At the current growth rates, Asia’s UHNWI population and wealth will eclipse that of Europe in 2021 and 2017, respectively,” the report said. Internews
