The city of Durban has shown the greatest growth in the number of millionaires living in the city, according to the South Africa 2015 Wealth Report, as reported by www.fin24.com.
South Africa’s millionaires increased from 19 900 to 46800 from 2000 to 2014, showing a 135% increase, the report showed.
The new super rich of Durban
“Millionaire numbers there [in Durban] have grown by 200% since 2000, compared to the national average growth rate of 135%,” said report analyst Andrew Amoils on Thursday.
“Durban’s strong growth was fuelled by massive millionaire growth in the Umhlanga and La Lucia areas, especially among the local Indian community.”
“The north coast of KwaZulu-Natal [immediately north of Durban] is also becoming increasingly popular for the super-rich, especially in the second home market. Specifically, areas such as Ballito and Zinkwazi are new hotspots for investment,” said Amoils.
According to the New World Wealth’s latest report, titled The South Africa 2015 Wealth Report, there are about 46 800 millionaires [high net worth individuals or HNWIs] living in South Africa – as of December 2014 – with combined wealth holdings of R2.2bn. This equates to roughly 31% of South Africa’s total individual wealth.
The report notes that millionaires or high net worth individuals are individuals with a net asset of R12m (US$1m) or more.
Johannesburg leads the pack
The report found Johannesburg led the pack with 23 400 dollar millionaires, followed by Cape Town (8 900), Durban (2 700) and Pretoria (2 500).
According to the report, 14 700 (31%) of South Africa’s millionaires hail from the previously disadvantaged groups.
The average age of the country’s multi-millionaires is 55 years, with a fifth of them making their fortunes in the financial sector. South Africa has the highest number of HNWIs in Africa.
According to the report, South Africa’s millionaires keep almost 20% of their wealth abroad in countries such as the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands, Switzerland, the Bahamas and the Cayman Islands.”