The streets of London may not be paved with gold, but there's evidently plenty of wealth circulating.
According to the World's Wealthiest Cities Report 2024, compiled by Henley & Partners and New World Wealth, one in 39 Londoners—or 227,000 individuals out of a population of 8.8 million—possess at least $1 million in liquid, investable wealth.
Globally, this positions the U.K. capital as the fifth city with the highest high-net-worth population, trailing behind New York (349,500 millionaires), San Francisco and the Bay Area (305,700), Tokyo (298,300), and Singapore (244,800).
Paris secures seventh place globally and second in Europe, with 165,000 liquid millionaires. Despite being the residence of the world's wealthiest individual, Bernard Arnault, the French capital lags behind London in total billionaires, with 23 compared to London's 35.
It's not surprising to find high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs) flocking to major global cities like these, where a significant portion of wealth is both generated and managed.
However, these rankings reflect more than just the economic activity of the cities. Policies also play a crucial role.
Historically, London and the wider U.K. were successful in attracting foreign HNWIs. However, data from Henley suggests that the country has experienced a net outflow of millionaires since the Brexit vote in 2016.
"Whatever one may think about the merits of Brexit, this cohort is voting with its feet. Coupled with the policy change to remove permanent non-domiciled taxpayer status, Brexit has made the UK less hospitable and welcoming to HNWIs," remarked former Lloyds Bank Commercial chief economist Trevor Williams last year.
A surge in millionaire net outflows also occurred in 2022-3, with an estimated 5,000 individuals leaving—a trend likely linked to the U.K.'s sudden termination of its tier 1 investor (or 'golden') visa program following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
London and Paris were among 15 other European cities in the global top 50, with Dublin experiencing the fastest-growing millionaire population and Moscow witnessing the fastest decline. Photo by Philippe Salgarolo, Wikimedia commons.