India still has considerable wealth poverty, says Credit Suisse report

India’s wealth has been on a strong upward trajectory since the turn of the century, with the annual growth of wealth per adult averaging at 8 per cent over 2000–18, suggests the latest Credit Suisse Research Institute’s 2018 Global Wealth Report. It pegs India’s total wealth at $6 trillion with a mean wealth of $7,024 per adult in 2018-mid.

However, growth over the years, the report says, has not been evenly spread, as there is still considerable ‘wealth poverty’ reflected in the fact that 91 per cent of the adult population has wealth below $10,000.

“At the other extreme, a small fraction of the population (0.6 per cent of adults) has a net worth over $100,000. However, owing to India's large population, this translates into 4.8 million people. The country has 404,000 adults in the top one per cent of global wealth holders, which is a 0.8 per cent share. By our estimates, 3,400 adults have wealth over $50 million, and 1,500 have more than $100 million,” Credit Suisse says.

Prior to 2008, wealth rose strongly from $1,830 in 2000 to $5,020 in 2007. After falling 26 per cent in 2008 (on account of global financial crisis), it rebounded, and grew at an average rate of 7 per cent up to 2018, the report suggests. Wealth per adult, as per their latest estimates, stood at $7,020 in mid-2018 after a year of slow growth in US dollar terms due to an exchange rate drop of 6 per cent.

Personal wealth in India is dominated by property and other real assets, which make up 91 per cent of estimated household assets.

"This is typical for developing countries. Personal debts are estimated to be only $840, or just 11 per cent of gross assets, even when adjustments are made for under-reporting. Although indebtedness is a severe problem for many poor people in India, overall household debt as a proportion of assets in India is lower than in most developed countries," Credit Suisse says.

At the other extreme, is the affluent class / millionaires in India, whose numbers, as per Credit Suisse estimates, stood at 343,000 by mid-2018, year-on-year (y-o-y) rise of 7,300. There are 3,400 ultra-high net-worth individuals in India, with wealth over $50 million – the sixth highest in the world, after US, China, Germany, United Kingdom and Japan.

Change in household wealth
	Total Wealth	Change in total wealth		Wealth per adult
	2018	2017-18	2017-18	2018	2017-18
	USD bn	USD bn	%	USD	%
Africa	2,553	108	4.4	4,138	1.5
Asia-Pacific	56,715	929	1.7	48,119	0
China	51,874	2,266	4.6	47,810	4
Europe	85,402	4,432	5.5	1,44,903	5.4
India	5,972	151	2.6	7,024	0.7
Latin America	8,055	(415)	(4.9)	18,605	(6.5)
North America	1,06,513	6,486	6.5	3,91,690	5.5
WORLD	3,17,084	13,958	4.6	63,100	3.2
Source: Credit Suisse Global Wealth Report 2018

In the next five years to 2023, Credit Suisse estimates the wealth in India to grow by 8 per cent per annum to reach $8.8 trillion. India could be home to 526,000 millionaires, an increase of over 53 per cent or 8.9 per cent per annum.

GLOBAL VIEW

The aggregate global wealth surged nearly 4.6 per cent, or $14 trillion, in the last 12 months till 2018-mid to $317 trillion – outpacing the growth in population, the Credit Suisse report says. Wealth per adult, as a result, grew at a record 3.2 per cent during this period to $63,100 per adult.

The US contributed most to global wealth, adding $6.3 trillion, taking its total to $98 trillion. China, according to the report, now has the second largest household wealth, having added $2.3 trillion to reach $52 trillion – and is projected to grow by a further $23 trillion in the next five years, taking its share of global wealth from 16 per cent in 2018 to just above 19 per cent in 2023.

“China is now clearly established in second place in the world wealth hierarchy. Our revised figures suggest that China overtook Japan with respect to the number of ultra-high net worth (UHNW) individuals in 2009, total wealth in 2011, and the number of millionaires in 2014,” the Credit Suisse report says.