America added 1,000 new millionaires every day last year

The world got richer in 2024 — and in the U.S., new millionaires were minted at a rate of more than 1,000 per day.

That’s one takeaway from the UBS 2025 Global Wealth Report, which highlights the growing significance of “everyday millionaires,” or “EMILLIs,” defined as individuals with between $1 million and $5 million in assets.

The number of these so-called EMILLIs has more than quadrupled since 2000, reaching 52 million people globally and accounting for $107 trillion in total wealth. That's almost as much as the $119 trillion held by individuals worth more than $5 million.

U.S. sees growth on back of stock market gains

In all, global personal wealth rose 4.6% in 2024, outpacing the previous year’s 4.2% gain. The growth was uneven, however, with North America leading the pack. Booming financial markets drove U.S. wealth levels up more than 11%, accounting for a significant share of the total global rebound. That's unsurprising given the returns in major U.S. indexes, including a 25% gain in the S&P 500 and a 30% leap in the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite.

On the other hand, with weaker stock market returns, regions like Western Europe and Latin America saw modest relative declines in wealth.

Number of billionaires increases, too

The number of billionaires worldwide also grew, but not at the same sharp pace.

UBS tallied almost 3,000 individuals with more than $1 billion in assets at the end of 2024, edging up slightly from the year prior. Most held between $1 billion and $49 billion, and only 31 held assets topping the $50 billion mark.

The report also emphasizes a longstanding truth: Wealth and income are not the same thing. While salaries influence public perceptions of prosperity, long-term wealth depends more on inheritances, market access, real estate values, and compounding capital. That explains why some high-income nations punch below their weight in wealth terms, while others show surprising levels of private wealth relative to earnings.

How women will benefit from the 'Great Wealth Transfer'

Looking ahead, UBS argues that the so-called “Great Wealth Transfer,” in which $83 trillion is expected to pass from older generations to their heirs over the next 20 years, may already be underway.

Women are expected to benefit disproportionately, especially in the U.S. Because women tend to outlive men, and stand to benefit from two significant transfers (from parents to children, and from one spouse to another), it's likely that, over the next few decades, women may come to control a greater and greater portion of U.S. and global wealth.