Most SA dollar millionaires live in Johannesburg – for now

Most South African dollar millionaires live in Johannesburg, for now. The City of Gold lost 44% of its millionaires over the past 10 years as many moved to the coast, demonstrated by the booming property market in the Western Cape.

According to the annual Africa Wealth Report compiled by Henly & Partners, that indicates where the continent’s rich people live, Johannesburg is the richest city in Africa with 12 300 millionaires, 25 centi-millionaires and two billionaires.

South African cities take up six places in the top 10 most popular cities for the rich, but billionaires only live in Johannesburg, Cape Town and the Cape Winelands.

Cape Town has 7 400 millionaires, 28 centi-millionaires and one billionaire, while the Cape Winelands has 3 600 millionaires, 16 centi-millionaires and two billionaires, Durban, Umhlanga and Balito have 3 500 millionaires and 11 centi-millionaires, the Garden Route has 3 200 millionaires and five centi-millionaires, Pretoria has 2 100 millionaires and two centi-millionaires and the Whale Coast has 1 200 millionaires and five centi-millionaires.

Andrew Amoils, head of research at New World Wealth, says African nations are losing large numbers of high-net-worth individuals to migration which is eroding the continent’s wealth.

“According to our latest figures, approximately 18 700 high-net-worth individuals have left Africa over the past decade.”

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Many Africa-born billionaires in the world

He points out that there are currently 54 Africa-born billionaires in the world, including one of the world’s richest, Elon Musk, but only 21 of them still live on the continent. Most of them have relocated to the UK, the US, Australia and the UAE. Significant numbers also moved to France, Switzerland, Monaco, Portugal, Canada, New Zealand and Israel.

Despite a tough decade which saw a 20% decline in its millionaire population, South Africa remains home to over twice as many high-net-worth individuals as any other African country, with 37 400 millionaires, 102 centi-millionaires and five billionaires.

Number two in Africa is Egypt with 15 600 millionaires, 52 centi-millionaires and seven billionaires, followed by Nigeria with 8 200 millionaires, Kenya with 7 200, Morocco with 6 800, Mauritius with 5 100, Algeria with 2 800, Ethiopia with 2 700, Ghana with 2 700 and Namibia with 2 300.

The ninth edition of the report shows that 135 200 high-net-worth individuals with liquid investable wealth of $1 million or more live in Africa, along with 342 centi-millionaires worth $100 million or more and 21 dollar billionaires.

Africa’s ‘Big 5’ wealth markets, South Africa, Egypt, Nigeria, Kenya and Morocco, are home for 56% of the continent’s millionaires and over 90% of its billionaires.

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Total investable wealth held on African continent

The total investable wealth currently held on the African continent amounts to $2.5 trillion and its millionaire population is set to rise by 65% over the next 10 years, according to the 2024 Africa Wealth Report, published by international wealth advisory firm Henley & Partners in collaboration with global wealth intelligence partner New World Wealth.

When it comes to future millionaire-magnet cities and regions, Amoils says Cape Town, South Africa’s Whale Coast, Kigali, Windhoek, Swakopmund, Nairobi, Tangier, and Marrakech are all expected to enjoy 85%+ millionaire growth over the next 10 years.

Going forward, over the next decade (to 2033), the likes of Mauritius, Namibia, Morocco, Zambia, Kenya, Uganda, and Rwanda are all expected to experience 80%+ millionaire growth. Mauritius, with its stable governance and favourable tax regime, is projected to experience a remarkable 95% growth rate, positioning it as one of the world’s fastest-growing wealth markets. Namibia, too, is poised for impressive high-net-worth growth, which is forecast to exceed 85% by 2033. Both Mauritius and Namibia offer investment migration pathways to attract global investors.

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Cape Town leads in luxury real estate

When it comes to luxury real estate, Cape Town continues to lead the way, with prime residential spaces valued at $5 600 per m². Grand Baie in Mauritius is close behind at $5 000 per m² for a prime 200 to 400m² apartment.

South Africa has five contenders in Africa’s Top 10 Most Expensive Cities, including Plettenberg Bay (2 400 per m²), Hermanus (2 300 per m²), Umhlanga (2 000 per m²) and Sandton (1 800 per m²). Morocco’s Marrakech (2 200 per m²), Tangier (1 600 per m²) and Casablanca (1 400 per m²) all make it into the exclusive club along with Egypt’s capital Cairo (1 500 per m²), which is also one of Africa’s largest cities.

However, Dominic Volek, group head of private clients at Henley & Partners, points out that the growth of wealth on the continent has not been without its setbacks.

“Currency depreciation and underperforming stock markets have chipped away at Africa’s wealth compared to global benchmarks.”

He says the South African Rand fell by 43% against the US dollar between 2013 and 2023 and although the JSE All Share Index, which makes up well over half of Africa’s listed company holdings, rose in local currency terms, it was down 5% in US dollar terms over that period.

“Currencies in most other African countries also performed poorly compared to the dollar over the past 10 years, with dramatic depreciations of over 75% recorded in Nigeria, Egypt, Angola and Zambia.”