The amount of wealth held worldwide is increasing at a steady pace and Swiss citizens hold a disproportionate share of it, says a report published by Credit Suisse.
Global wealth increased 2.6 percent over the past year to $360 billion in mid-2019, an average of $70,850 per adult person. Total global wealth is at a record, according to the tenth Global Wealth Report published by Credit Suisse on Monday.
Citizens in Switzerland still have the biggest average share of wealth, with $564,650 per adult. The average personal wealth increased 144 percent since the beginning of the century. To be sure, growth of Swiss wealth was closely linked to the appreciation of the Swiss franc versus the U.S. dollar during that period.
Top Wealth, Top Debt
Swiss people own some $3.9 trillion in total. Of that total, some 55 percent are invested in financial products, Credit Suisse said.
By contrast, Swiss people also have a record amount of debt, with an average $142,620 per person, or about 20 percent of total assets held by Swiss citizens.
Rich Keeps the Poor at Bay
Switzerland is the only country surveyed (of ten) where the distribution of wealth hasn't improved over the past 100 years. Only ten countries have data available for such a lengthy stretch of time.
Out of the top 1 percent of wealthy people worldwide, some 1.8 percent are resident in Switzerland. Two thirds of Swiss adults own more than $100,000, and 12 percent are millionaires (in U.S. dollars terms). 2,200 people have more than $50 million (so-called ultra-high net-worth individuels) and 770 own more than $100 million.
