National net wealth, also known as national net worth, is the total sum of the value of a country's assets minus its liabilities. It refers to the total value of net wealth possessed by the residents of a state at a set point in time. [1] Despite the name, figures in this article only cover household wealth and exclude government wealth, which may be substantial, as in China, or negative, as in the UK or US, and so does not show total wealth. This figure is an important indicator of a nation's ability to take on debt and sustain spending and is influenced not only by real estate prices, equity market prices, exchange rates, liabilities and incidence in a country of the population, but also by human resources, natural resources, and capital and technological advancements, which may create new assets or render others worthless in the future.
The most significant component by far among most developed nations is commonly reported as household net wealth or worth, and reflects infrastructure investment. National wealth can fluctuate, as evidenced in the United States after the Great Recession and subsequent economic recovery. During periods when equity markets experience strong growth, the relative national and per capita wealth of the countries where people are more exposed on those markets, such as the United States and United Kingdom, tend to rise. On the other hand, when equity markets are depressed, the relative wealth of the countries where people invest more in real estate and bonds, such as France and Italy, tend to rise instead.
* indicates "Wealth in country or territory" or "Economy of country or territory" links.
In the following table are ranked the 30 countries by the largest national net wealth from 2000 to 2022 according to UBS and Credit Suisse S.A. (August 2023). [4]
Country | 2000 | Country | 2005 | Country | 2010 | Country | 2015 | Country | 2020 | Country | 2022 | Country | Peak value | Peak year |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
World | 117,825 | World | 182,218 | World | 252,084 | World | 297,743 | World | 422,718 | World | 454,385 | World | 465,666 | 2021 |
United States | 43,423 | United States | 62,634 | United States | 64,661 | United States | 87,959 | United States | 126,300 | United States | 139,866 | United States | 145,793 | 2021 |
Japan | 19,404 | Japan | 19,476 | Japan | 28,640 | China | 46,535 | China | 73,866 | China | 84,485 | China | 85,947 | 2021 |
United Kingdom | 6,565 | United Kingdom | 10,949 | China | 25,493 | Japan | 21,519 | Japan | 26,744 | Japan | 22,582 | Japan | 29,718 | 2011 |
Germany | 6,160 | France | 9,679 | France | 13,526 | United Kingdom | 13,978 | Germany | 18,053 | Germany | 17,426 | Germany | 18,412 | 2021 |
Italy | 5,522 | Italy | 9,457 | Germany | 11,934 | Germany | 12,009 | France | 16,326 | United Kingdom | 15,972 | United Kingdom | 16,741 | 2021 |
France | 4,704 | Germany | 9,073 | Italy | 11,545 | France | 11,594 | United Kingdom | 15,454 | France | 15,727 | France | 16,326 | 2020 |
China | 3,704 | China | 8,522 | United Kingdom | 11,199 | Italy | 10,506 | India | 12,688 | India | 15,365 | India | 15,365 | 2022 |
Canada | 2,613 | Spain | 6,905 | Spain | 8,701 | India | 8,948 | Italy | 12,176 | Canada | 11,263 | Italy | 12,820 | 2007 |
Spain | 2,497 | Canada | 4,363 | Canada | 6,832 | Canada | 6,930 | Canada | 10,586 | Italy | 11,020 | Canada | 12,501 | 2021 |
South Korea | 1,721 | South Korea | 3,508 | India | 6,810 | Australia | 6,424 | South Korea | 9,625 | South Korea | 9,890 | Australia | 10,734 | 2021 |
Netherlands | 1,591 | Australia | 3,480 | Australia | 6,662 | Spain | 6,177 | Australia | 9,268 | Australia | 9,720 | Spain | 10,296 | 2007 |
India | 1,553 | India | 3,266 | South Korea | 4,744 | South Korea | 6,128 | Spain | 8,759 | Spain | 8,487 | South Korea | 9,946 | 2021 |
Australia | 1,500 | Netherlands | 2,524 | Netherlands | 3,323 | Taiwan | 3,514 | Netherlands | 5,447 | Taiwan | 5,422 | Taiwan | 5,776 | 2021 |
Taiwan | 1,437 | Taiwan | 1,883 | Brazil | 3,128 | Switzerland | 3,428 | Taiwan | 4,920 | Netherlands | 4,869 | Netherlands | 5,447 | 2020 |
Switzerland | 1,273 | Belgium | 1,826 | Switzerland | 2,892 | Netherlands | 3,255 | Switzerland | 4,673 | Mexico | 4,863 | Switzerland | 4,893 | 2021 |
Belgium | 1,110 | Switzerland | 1,737 | Taiwan | 2,628 | Mexico | 2,659 | Mexico | 3,767 | Switzerland | 4,829 | Mexico | 4,863 | 2022 |
Hong Kong | 871 | Mexico | 1,563 | Belgium | 2,565 | Hong Kong | 2,548 | Belgium | 3,544 | Brazil | 4,628 | Brazil | 4,628 | 2022 |
Mexico | 828 | Austria | 1,067 | Mexico | 2,261 | Belgium | 2,531 | Hong Kong | 3,446 | Russia | 4,386 | Russia | 4,386 | 2022 |
Austria | 719 | Brazil | 1,064 | Russia | 2,165 | Brazil | 2,398 | Russia | 3,177 | Hong Kong | 3,493 | Belgium | 3,544 | 2020 |
Brazil | 646 | Turkey | 1,034 | Turkey | 1,718 | Indonesia | 1,899 | Brazil | 3,092 | Indonesia | 3,256 | Hong Kong | 3,495 | 2021 |
Greece | 618 | Greece | 1,020 | Sweden | 1,628 | Russia | 1,824 | Indonesia | 3,087 | Belgium | 3,195 | Indonesia | 3,256 | 2022 |
Turkey | 525 | Hong Kong | 976 | Hong Kong | 1,588 | Sweden | 1,783 | Sweden | 2,742 | Iran | 3,034 | Iran | 3,034 | 2022 |
Sweden | 522 | Sweden | 966 | Austria | 1,460 | Turkey | 1,777 | Saudi Arabia | 1,905 | Sweden | 2,335 | Sweden | 2,865 | 2021 |
Denmark | 451 | Russia | 869 | Indonesia | 1,359 | Saudi Arabia | 1,437 | Austria | 1,855 | Saudi Arabia | 2,268 | Saudi Arabia | 2,268 | 2022 |
Portugal | 422 | Denmark | 799 | Greece | 1,252 | Austria | 1,408 | Denmark | 1,793 | Singapore | 1,906 | Denmark | 1,998 | 2021 |
Saudi Arabia | 415 | Portugal | 731 | Denmark | 1,022 | Singapore | 1,075 | Singapore | 1,637 | Denmark | 1,869 | Turkey | 1,970 | 2013 |
Indonesia | 364 | Indonesia | 704 | Norway | 988 | Denmark | 1,055 | Turkey | 1,509 | Austria | 1,794 | Singapore | 1,906 | 2022 |
Ireland | 336 | Ireland | 696 | Portugal | 958 | Egypt | 1,035 | Poland | 1,465 | Norway | 1,644 | Austria | 1,855 | 2020 |
Norway | 336 | Poland | 622 | Poland | 936 | Thailand | 1,000 | Iran | 1,443 | Poland | 1,592 | New Zealand | 1,658 | 2021 |
Singapore | 324 | Saudi Arabia | 620 | Thailand | 926 | Poland | 993 | New Zealand | 1,436 | New Zealand | 1,426 | Norway | 1,644 | 2022 |
The following table indicates the share of global wealth of the ten wealthiest countries by net national wealth at given years. The share of global wealth of a country that is 5% or greater at a given year is in bold.
Year | Australia | Canada | China | France | Germany | India | Italy | Japan | South Korea | Spain | United Kingdom | United States | Aggregate share of the top 10 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2000 | — | 2.2% | 3.1% | 4.0% | 5.2% | — | 4.7% | 16.5% | 1.5% | 2.1% | 5.6% | 36.9% | 81.8% |
2001 | — | 2.1% | 3.6% | 4.0% | 5.2% | — | 4.6% | 14.1% | 1.5% | 2.3% | 5.6% | 38.8% | 81.8% |
2002 | — | 2.0% | 3.7% | 4.6% | 5.5% | — | 5.3% | 13.8% | 1.7% | 2.9% | 6.1% | 35.1% | 80.7% |
2003 | 1.9% | 2.2% | 3.7% | 5.2% | 5.8% | — | 5.7% | 12.9% | — | 3.5% | 6.2% | 32.8% | 79.9% |
2004 | 1.9% | 2.2% | 3.9% | 5.6% | 5.7% | — | 5.7% | 11.5% | — | 3.9% | 6.5% | 32.5% | 79.4% |
2005 | — | 2.4% | 4.7% | 5.3% | 5.0% | — | 5.2% | 10.7% | 1.9% | 3.8% | 6.0% | 34.4% | 79.4% |
2006 | 2.0% | 2.3% | 5.0% | 5.8% | 5.0% | — | 5.5% | 9.5% | — | 4.2% | 6.4% | 32.3% | 78.0% |
2007 | 2.3% | 2.6% | 6.0% | 6.1% | 5.3% | — | 5.5% | 8.6% | — | 4.4% | 6.2% | 29.3% | 76.3% |
2008 | — | 2.2% | 8.2% | 6.0% | 5.4% | 2.2% | 5.6% | 11.2% | — | 4.4% | 4.4% | 27.5% | 77.1% |
2009 | 2.4% | 2.6% | 8.6% | 5.7% | 5.3% | — | 5.4% | 10.2% | — | 4.1% | 4.8% | 26.3% | 75.4% |
Year | Australia | Canada | China | France | Germany | India | Italy | Japan | South Korea | Spain | United Kingdom | United States | Aggregate share of the top 10 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2010 | — | 2.7% | 10.1% | 5.4% | 4.7% | 2.7% | 4.6% | 11.4% | — | 3.5% | 4.4% | 25.7% | 75.2% |
2011 | — | 2.7% | 11.9% | 5.1% | 4.6% | 2.5% | 4.3% | 11.4% | — | 3.4% | 4.5% | 25.2% | 75.6% |
2012 | — | 2.8% | 12.5% | 4.8% | 4.6% | 2.7% | 4.2% | 9.8% | — | 2.9% | 4.4% | 25.6% | 74.3% |
2013 | — | 2.7% | 13.8% | 4.8% | 4.7% | 2.6% | 4.1% | 7.8% | — | 2.7% | 4.5% | 26.8% | 74.5% |
2014 | 2.2% | 2.6% | 15.1% | 4.2% | 4.3% | 2.8% | 3.9% | 7.1% | — | — | 4.7% | 28.6% | 75.5% |
2015 | 2.2% | 2.3% | 15.6% | 3.9% | 4.0% | 3.0% | 3.5% | 7.2% | — | — | 4.7% | 29.5% | 75.9% |
2016 | 2.2% | 2.5% | 16.7% | 3.8% | 3.9% | 3.2% | 3.3% | 7.2% | — | — | 4.0% | 29.9% | 76.7% |
2017 | 2.2% | 2.4% | 17.4% | 3.9% | 4.1% | 3.3% | 3.3% | 6.7% | — | — | 4.1% | 28.4% | 75.8% |
2018 | — | 2.2% | 18.4% | 3.8% | 4.1% | 3.4% | 3.0% | 6.7% | 2.2% | — | 3.7% | 28.5% | 76.0% |
2019 | — | 2.3% | 18.1% | 3.6% | 4.0% | 3.4% | 2.8% | 6.5% | 2.1% | — | 3.6% | 29.6% | 76.0% |
Year | Australia | Canada | China | France | Germany | India | Italy | Japan | South Korea | Spain | United Kingdom | United States | Aggregate share of the top 10 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2020 | — | 2.5% | 17.5% | 3.9% | 4.3% | 3.0% | 2.9% | 6.3% | 2.3% | — | 3.7% | 29.9% | 76.3% |
2021 | 2.3% | 2.7% | 18.5% | 3.5% | 4.0% | 3.2% | 2.5% | 5.4% | — | — | 3.6% | 31.3% | 77.0% |
2022 | — | 2.5% | 18.6% | 3.5% | 3.8% | 3.4% | 2.4% | 5.0% | 2.2% | — | 3.5% | 30.8% | 75.7% |
2023 |
Income is the consumption and saving opportunity gained by an entity within a specified timeframe, which is generally expressed in monetary terms. Income is difficult to define conceptually and the definition may be different across fields. For example, a person's income in an economic sense may be different from their income as defined by law.
In finance, equity is an ownership interest in property that may be offset by debts or other liabilities. Equity is measured for accounting purposes by subtracting liabilities from the value of the assets owned. For example, if someone owns a car worth $24,000 and owes $2000 on the loan used to buy the car, the difference of $22,000 is equity. Equity can apply to a single asset, such as a car or house, or to an entire business. A business that needs to start up or expand its operations can sell its equity in order to raise cash that does not have to be repaid on a set schedule.
Wealth is the abundance of valuable financial assets or physical possessions which can be converted into a form that can be used for transactions. This includes the core meaning as held in the originating Old English word weal, which is from an Indo-European word stem. The modern concept of wealth is of significance in all areas of economics, and clearly so for growth economics and development economics, yet the meaning of wealth is context-dependent. A person possessing a substantial net worth is known as wealthy. Net worth is defined as the current value of one's assets less liabilities.
A millionaire is an individual whose net worth or wealth is equal to or exceeds one million units of currency. Depending on the currency, a certain level of prestige is associated with being a millionaire. Many national currencies have, or have had at various times, a low unit value, in many cases due to past inflation. It is much easier and less significant to be a millionaire in those currencies, thus a millionaire in Hong Kong or Taiwan, for example, may be merely averagely wealthy, or perhaps less wealthy than average. A millionaire in Zimbabwe in 2007 could have been extremely poor. Because of this, the term 'millionaire' generally refers to those whose assets total at least one million units of a high-value currency, such as the United States dollar, euro, or pound sterling.
Net worth is the value of all the non-financial and financial assets owned by an individual or institution minus the value of all its outstanding liabilities. Financial assets minus outstanding liabilities equal net financial assets, so net worth can be expressed as the sum of non-financial assets and net financial assets. This concept can apply to companies, individuals, governments, or economic sectors such as the financial corporations sector, or even entire countries.
Credit Suisse Group AG is a global investment bank and financial services firm founded and based in Switzerland as a standalone firm but now a subsidiary of UBS. According to UBS, eventually Credit Suisse will be fully integrated into UBS but while the integration is not complete both banks are operating separately. Headquartered in Zürich, as a standalone firm it maintained offices in all major financial centers around the world and provided services in investment banking, private banking, asset management, and shared services. It was known for strict bank–client confidentiality and banking secrecy. The Financial Stability Board considered it to be a global systemically important bank. Credit Suisse was also a primary dealer and Forex counterparty of the Federal Reserve in the United States.
Tobin's q, is the ratio between a physical asset's market value and its replacement value. It was first introduced by Nicholas Kaldor in 1966 in his paper: Marginal Productivity and the Macro-Economic Theories of Distribution: Comment on Samuelson and Modigliani. It was popularised a decade later by James Tobin, who in 1970, described its two quantities as:
One, the numerator, is the market valuation: the going price in the market for exchanging existing assets. The other, the denominator, is the replacement or reproduction cost: the price in the market for newly produced commodities. We believe that this ratio has considerable macroeconomic significance and usefulness, as the nexus between financial markets and markets for goods and services.
The distribution of wealth is a comparison of the wealth of various members or groups in a society. It shows one aspect of economic inequality or economic heterogeneity.
A wealth tax is a tax on an entity's holdings of assets or an entity's net worth. This includes the total value of personal assets, including cash, bank deposits, real estate, assets in insurance and pension plans, ownership of unincorporated businesses, financial securities, and personal trusts. Typically, wealth taxation often involves the exclusion of an individual's liabilities, such as mortgages and other debts, from their total assets. Accordingly, this type of taxation is frequently denoted as a netwealth tax.
High-net-worth individual (HNWI) is a technical term used in the financial services industry for people who maintain liquid assets at or above a certain threshold. Typically, they are defined as holding financial assets valued over US$1 million. A secondary level, a very-high-net-worth individual (VHNWI), refers to someone with a net worth of at least US$5 million. The terminal level, an ultra-high-net-worthindividual (UHNWI), holds US$30 million in investible assets. Individuals with a net worth of over US$1 billion are considered to occupy a special bracket of the UHNWI. These thresholds are broadly used in studies of wealth inequality, government regulation, investment suitability requirements, marketing, financing standards, and general corporate strategy.
Private banking is a general description for banking, investment and other financial services provided by banks and financial institutions primarily serving high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs) – those with very high income and/or substantial assets. Private banking is presented by those who provide such services as an exclusive subset of wealth management services, provided to particularly affluent clients. The term "private" refers to customer service rendered on a more personal basis than in mass-market retail banking, usually provided via dedicated bank advisers. It has typically consisted of banking services, discretionary asset management, brokerage, limited tax advisory services and some basic concierge services, typically offered through a gateway provided by a single designated relationship manager.
The inequality of wealth has substantially increased in the United States in recent decades. Wealth commonly includes the values of any homes, automobiles, personal valuables, businesses, savings, and investments, as well as any associated debts.
The financial position of the United States includes assets of at least $269 trillion and debts of $145.8 trillion to produce a net worth of at least $123.8 trillion. GDP in 2014 Q1 decline was due to foreclosures and increased rates of household saving. There were significant declines in debt to GDP in each sector except the government, which ran large deficits to offset deleveraging or debt reduction in other sectors.
UBS Group AG is a multinational investment bank and financial services company founded and based in Switzerland. Headquartered simultaneously in Zürich and Basel, it maintains a presence in all major financial centres as the largest Swiss banking institution and the largest private bank in the world. UBS investment bankers and private bankers are known for their strict bank–client confidentiality and culture of banking secrecy. Because of the bank's large positions in the Americas, EMEA and Asia Pacific markets, the Financial Stability Board considers it a global systemically important bank.
Paper wealth means wealth as measured by monetary value, as reflected in price of assets – how much money one's assets could be sold for. Paper wealth is contrasted with real wealth, which refers to one's actual physical assets.
The asset price channel is the monetary transmission channel that is responsible for the distribution of the effects induced by monetary policy decisions made by the central bank of a country that affect the price of assets. These effects on the prices of assets will in turn affect the economy.
Wealth is the total sum value of monetary assets and valuable material possessions owned by an individual, minus private debt, at a set point in time.