( Spanish) – The Annual Report of Wealth of the British company Knight Franka British real estate consultancy, reveals the net worth it takes to be part of the exclusive richest 1% in 25 countries and/or territories.
The data shows that Monaco tops the list with the densest population of super-rich individuals. To be in the top 1% of the principality’s richest people, you need a net worth of US$12.4 million.
In second place, Switzerland follows with a great distance, since in the country it takes US$ 6.6 million (almost half of what is required in Monaco) to be part of the richest 1%.
Australia ranks third, with $5.5 million; followed by New Zealand, with US$ 5.2 million; United States, with about US$5.1 million, and Ireland with US$4.3 million.
The Knight Frank report shows three countries on the European continent with a relatively small difference. These are the United Kingdom, with US$3.3 million; Italy, with US$2.6 million, and Spain, with US$2.5 million.
In Asia, Singapore has the highest threshold, since it takes US$3.5 million to belong to that 1%. This is followed by Hong Kong, with US$3.4 million; Japan, where US$1.7 million is needed, and the last place on the continent is occupied by China, with US$960,000.
In the Middle East, the gap between one country and another is significant. In the United Arab Emirates, you need a net worth of US$1.6 million to be part of the richest 1% of the country, while in Saudi Arabia you need to have US$740,000.
In Latin America, the inhabitants of Brazil need about US$433,000 to belong to the richest 1% of the population, followed by Mexico, with a relatively low US$383,000.
According to Oxfam’s annual inequality report published in January, over the past two years, the world’s richest 1% have captured almost twice as much wealth as the rest. The fortunes of the super-rich have accelerated during the pandemic, skyrocketing by $26 trillion, while the remaining 99% of the population only increased their net worth by $16 trillion.
Inequality in Latin America
The richest 1% in Latin America highlights the problem of inequality in the region, where poverty is a widespread reality. According to projections from the 2022 report of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (Cepal)In Latin America, 201 million people live in poverty (more than 30% of the total population), of which 82 million (more than 13%) are in extreme poverty.
He ECLAC Gini Index registered in 2020 reflects that the national average in Latin America is 0.464, a figure that has been worsening since 2010.
The Gini coefficient measures inequality in the distribution of income and ranges from 0 to 1, where 0 is perfect equality and 1 is perfect inequality.
The Gini Index increased notably with the pandemic, since in addition to the significant number of layoffs that were registered in the continent, it is added that only 21% of the employed in the region could carry out remote work, as reflected the data of the ECLAC Social Panorama.
