Africa’s total investable wealth stands at $2.5 trillion and its millionaire population is expected to rise by 65% over the next decade.
This was according to the 2024 Africa Wealth Report that is published by wealth advisory firm Henley & Partners in collaboration with wealth intelligence partner New World Wealth.
Now in its ninth edition, the annual report revealed that there were 135 200 high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs), with liquid investable wealth of $1 million or more, living in Africa, along with 342 centi-millionaires worth $100 million or more, and 21 dollar billionaires.
Africa’s “Big 5” wealth markets are South Africa, Egypt, Nigeria, Kenya, and Morocco that together account for 56% of the continent’s millionaires and over 90% of its billionaires.
Henley & Partners’ group head of Private Clients, Dominic Volek, said that wealth growth on the continent was not without challenges.
“Currency depreciation and underperforming stock markets have chipped away at Africa’s wealth compared to global benchmarks. The South African rand fell 43% against the US dollar from 2013–2023, and even though the JSE all share index, which makes up well over half of Africa’s listed company holdings, rose in local currency terms, it was down 5% in US dollar terms. Currencies in most other African countries also performed poorly compared to the dollar over the past 10 years, with dramatic depreciations of over 75% recorded in Nigeria, Egypt, Angola, and Zambia,” Volek said.
New World Wealth head of research Andrew Amoils said African nations were also losing large numbers of HNWIs to migration, which was eroding the continent’s wealth.
“According to our latest figures, about 18 700 high-net-worth individuals have left Africa over the past decade (2013 to 2023). There are 54 African-born billionaires in the world, including one of the world’s richest, Elon Musk, but only 21 of them still live on the continent. Most of these individuals have relocated to the UK, the US, Australia, and the UAE. Significant numbers have also moved to France, Switzerland, Monaco, Portugal, Canada, New Zealand, and Israel,” said Amoils.
Despite a tough decade that saw a 20% decline in its millionaire population, South Africa remained home to over twice as many HNWIs as any other African country, with 37 400 millionaires, 102 centi-millionaires, and five billionaires.
Egypt was second with 15 600 millionaires, 52 centi-millionaires, and seven billionaires.
Nigeria followed at third place with 8 200 HNWIs then Kenya (7 200 millionaires), Morocco (6 800), Mauritius (5 100), Algeria (2 800), Ethiopia (2 700), Ghana (2 700), and Namibia (2 300), all making it into the Top 10 Wealthiest Countries in Africa.
Over the next decade to 2033, the likes of Mauritius, Namibia, Morocco, Zambia, Kenya, Uganda, and Rwanda were all expected to experience more than 80% growth in their numbers of millionaires.
Mauritius, with its stable governance and favourable tax regime, was projected to experience a remarkable 95% growth rate, positioning it as one of the world’s fastest-growing wealth markets.
Namibia, too, was poised for impressive growth in the numbers of HNWIs, which was forecast to exceed 85% by 2033.
At the city level, Johannesburg held its place as the wealthiest in Africa, with 12 300 millionaires, 25 centi-millionaires, and two billionaires. Cape Town followed closely with 7 400 millionaires, 28 centi-millionaires, and one billionaire.
Cairo, with 7 200 millionaires, Nairobi (4 400), and Lagos (4 200) also stood out as key urban wealth hubs.
Regarding future millionaire-magnet cities and regions, Amoils said Cape Town, South Africa’s Whale Coast, Kigali, Windhoek, Swakopmund, Nairobi, Tangier, and Marrakesh were all expected to enjoy 85%+ millionaire growth over the next 10 years.
“Solid growth of over 80%+ is also projected in Lusaka and Mombasa. Cape Town is on track to overtake Johannesburg to become Africa’s wealthiest city by 2030,” he said.
BUSINESS REPORT