It’s been a banner year for billionaires the world over. In 2021, Forbes found a record 2,755 billionaires across 70 countries—nearly a third higher than the 2,095 listed in 2020. Once again, nearly half of the individuals on Forbes’ World’s Billionaires list hail from the U. S. and China. But nearly every other country on the planet also gained new billionaires this year, with only one—the Caribbean island nation of St. Kitts and Nevis—recording fewer billionaires than in 2020. Kuwait and Angola saw their only billionaires fall off the list all well, leaving them with none. The U. S. still has the highest number of billionaires in the world, with 724 American citizens in the three comma club—a record high that beats last year’s tally of 615—but the gap between the first and second spot has narrowed. China gained a stunning 239 billionaires since March 2020, bringing its total to 626. The gap between the number of billionaires in these two countries has been shrinking for years, declining from 283 in 2018 to 227 in 2019 and now just 98. The total wealth of the countries’ billionaires continues to grow. The 724 U. S. billionaires have a collective net worth of $4.4 trillion—up $1.5 trillion from last year—led by the richest person in the world, Jeff Bezos, and his $177 billion fortune. China’s billionaires are $1.3 trillion richer than last year, with a collective net worth of $2.5 trillion. Adding in Hong Kong (71 billionaires) and Macao (one) brings greater China’s total billionaire count to 698 billionaires, up from 456 last year. Outside of the top two, a new country broke into the third spot. India, with 140 billionaires, pushed past Germany, which fell to fourth with 136 billionaires. India gained 19 new billionaires this year—a feat matched by Canada and exceeded only by the U. S., China and Germany—and its billionaires have a collective net worth of $596 billion, a 90% increase from last year’s figure of $313 billion. Further down, Italy entered the top ten with 51 billionaires, dislodging France, which fell to the fifteenth spot. The Asia-Pacific region remains the leader with a record 1,149 billionaires—370 more than last year, largely due to the newcomers from China and India. Every single region tracked by Forbes (Europe, the Middle East and Africa, U. S., and the Americas) gained more billionaires since 2020, a stark reversal from last year, when they all declined compared to 2019 amid the Covid crash. Here are the 10 countries and territories with the most billionaires. Net worths were calculated using stock prices and currency exchange rates from March 5, 2021:*Hong Kong is an autonomous territory of China.


All data is taken from the source: http://forbes.com
Article Link: https://www.forbes.com/sites/giacomotognini/2021/04/06/the-countries-with-the-most-billionaires-2021/


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