The rich are getting richer, and their numbers are swelling.

That's according to a report from Capgemini and RBC Wealth Management that says the share of high-net-worth individuals grew by 14.7 percent to 13.7 million last year.

The 2014 World Wealth Report also found that these HNWIs' wealth increased 13.8 percent to $52.62 trillion, up from $46.22 trillion in 2012.

Recommended For You

Where can all of these people be found? Where do they live and work?

The world's wealthiest, defined in the report as those having investable assets of at least $1 million, primarily live in the North American and Asian-Pacific regions.

Also read: High net-worth investors ready to take risks again

Millionaires especially swelled in numbers in the Asia-Pacific, as Japan recorded an unprecedented 22.3 percent growth surge in HNWIs. That region trailed North America's HNWI population of 4.33 million by just 10,000 individuals.

The U.S., Japan, Germany and China together hold the largest share of the global HNWI population, 59.9 percent, after experiencing nearly 70 percent of the total HNWI population growth in 2013.

In case you're wondering, large homes, fast cars and luxury items aren't the only things on which HNWIs are spending their money.  

According to 2014 first-quarter data, these millionaires often use their money to drive social impact. That is either "extremely" or "very important" to over 60 percent of HNWIs, and especially important to the wealthy in Asia. Their No. 1 cause? Health, diseases and palliative care.

What follows is the World Wealth Report's ranking of the top 10 countries where the wealthiest people can be found, their growth rate, and how much they value changing the world:

No. 1 U.S.

2013: 4 million

2012: 3.43 million

Growth: 16.6%

Driving social impact "very important": 33%

No. 2 Japan

2013: 2.32 million

2012: 1.9 million

Growth: 22.3%

Driving social impact "very important": 37.6%

No. 3 Germany

2013: 1.13 million

2012: 1.01 million

Growth: 11.4%

Driving social impact "very important": 45.4%

No. 4 China

2013: 758,000

2012: 643,000

Growth: 17.8%

Driving social impact "very important": 53.6%

No. 5 United Kingdom

2013: 527,000

2012: 465,000

Growth: 13.4%

Driving social impact "very important": 37.3%

No. 6 France

2013: 472,000

2012: 430,000

Growth: 9.7%

Driving social impact "very important": 31.4%

No. 7 Switzerland

2013: 330,000

2012: 282,000

Growth: 16.8%

Driving social impact "very important": 36.9%

No. 8 Canada

2013: 320,000

2012: 298,000

Growth: 7.2%

Driving social impact "very important": 31.4% 

No. 9 Australia

2013: 219,000

2012: 207,000

Growth: 5.8%

Driving social impact "very important": 30.3%

No. 10 Italy

2013: 203,000

2012: 176,000

Growth: 15.6%

Driving social impact "very important": 41.4%

 

 

NOT FOR REPRINT

© 2025 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.