China is home to five of the top 10 wealthiest cities within the Brics bloc, with the Chinese capital Beijing securing the top spot, but there was no room for any of South Africa’s big cities on the rich list.
This is according to the inaugural Brics Wealth Report which was published by international investment migration advisory firm Henley & Partners in collaboration with global wealth intelligence firm New World Wealth.
The report said the total investable wealth currently held in Brics amounts to $45 trillion and its millionaire population is expected to rise by 85% over the next 10 years.
The Brics bloc consists of founding members Brazil, Russia, India, China, who joined in 2006, and South Africa, who joined in 2010, as well as new members Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, who joined at the start of January 2024.
China is home to five of the top 10 wealthiest cities, with the Chinese capital Beijing securing the top spot as the wealthiest Brics city with over 125,600 dollar millionaires.
Among them, there are also 42 dollar billionaires in Beijing and 347 centi-millionaires.
| CITY | COUNTRY | NUMBER OF DOLLAR MILLIONAIRES |
| Beijing | China | 125,600 |
| Shanghai | China | 123,400 |
| Dubai | United Arab Emirates | 72,500 |
| Mumbai | India | 58,800 |
| Shenzhen | China | 50,300 |
| Hangzhou | China | 31,600 |
| Delhi | India | 31,000 |
| Moscow | Russia | 30,300 |
| Guangzhou | China | 24,500 |
| Abu Dhabi | United Arab Emirates | 22,700 |
| Source: Brics Wealth Report |
Shanghai was a close second with 123,400 residents with high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs), of whom 322 are centi-millionaires and 39 are billionaires.
The other three Chinese cities that rank in the top 10 are Shenzhen in 5th place with 50,300 millionaires of which 154 are centi-millionaires and 22 are billionaires.
Chinese cities Hangzhou and Guangzhou hold the 6th and 9th place on the ranking. Hangzhou has 31,600 millionaires of which 102 are centi-millionaires and 12 are billionaires while Guangzhou 24,500 millionaires of which 70 are centi-millionaires and 9 are billionaires.
The UAE and India each have two cities in the top 10.
In 3rd place, Dubai lives up to its reputation as the ‘City of Gold’ with 72,500 millionaires making it their home, of whom 212 are centi-millionaires and 15 are billionaires.
Abu Dhabi sits in 10th place with 22,700 resident millionaires including 68 centi-millionaires and 5 billionaires.
Mumbai, India’s de-facto financial hub, sits at 4th place with 58,800 resident millionaires of which 236 are centi-millionaires and 29 are billionaires.
The Indian capital, Delhi, ranks 7th and is home to 31,000 millionaires, including 123 centi-millionaires and 16 billionaires.
Moscow ranks in at 8th place and has 30,300 millionaires of which 207 centi-millionaires and 23 are billionaires.
According to the report, Moscow is the only Top 10 city with a declining millionaire population over the past decade.
Moscow saw a 24% drop in HNWIs while the rest of the wealthiest cities in BRICS have all enjoyed significant private wealth growth of between 75% and 140%.
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