Global billionaires 2919 people, total assets 'US$15.8 trillion'

Korea Economic Daily

Summary

UBS said global billionaires were counted at 2919, an increase of 237 from a year earlier.
Their total assets were US$15.8 trillion, up 13% from a year earlier, and the assets of technology-sector billionaires grew significantly, the analysis said.
Korean billionaires numbered 31, down 7 year-on-year, and their total assets also decreased by 16%.

Holdings of US$1 billion or more, 287 more this year

Largest increase due to AI-driven stock market boom

As global stock markets continued to rally, an analysis found that the number of billionaires worldwide increased by nearly 300 compared to the previous year.

According to the '2025 Billionaires Report' released on the 4th (local time) by Swiss bank UBS, as of April this year there were a total of 2919 billionaires worldwide with assets of US$1 billion or more. That is 237 more (8.8%) than the same period a year earlier (2682). It was the largest inflow since 2021, when asset prices surged due to COVID-19 pandemic stimulus measures.

The total assets held by billionaires amounted to US$15.8 trillion (about KRW 23,213 trillion), a 13% increase year-on-year. In particular, the assets of billionaires in the technology sector rose sharply. This was due to the surge in share prices of companies leading AI innovation, such as Nvidia and Oracle.

Most (196) of those who joined the ranks of billionaires this year are self-made entrepreneurs. The list includes Ben Lamm, founder of U.S. biotech company Colossal Biosciences; Michael Dorrell, co-founder of infrastructure investment firm Stonepeak Partners; brothers Zhang Hongchao and Zhang Hongfu, founders of the Chinese bubble tea and ice cream chain 'Mixue Bingcheng'; and Justin Sun, who created the cryptocurrency Tron. UBS explained that while self-made billionaires benefited from rising asset prices in a liquidity-rich environment in 2021, this year the increase in billionaires is due to broad-based entrepreneurial activity.

The remaining 91 became new billionaires through inheritance. The assets they inherited amounted to US$298 billion, a 36% increase from the same period a year earlier. UBS said, "This shows that the transfer of wealth carried out over years is accelerating further." According to UBS analysis, over the next 15 years the children of billionaires are expected to inherit at least US$5.9 trillion.

The number of Korean billionaires was 31, down 7 from 38 a year earlier. The total assets held by Korean billionaires fell from US$105 billion last year to US$88.2 billion this year, a 16% decrease.

Reporter Han Gyeongje hankyung@hankyung.com