You Vs The Mega Rich

YOU VS. THE MEGA RICH

As we work with people who are looking to raise finance every day, we have a very good idea of the financial health of the nation. Some of our clients are wealthy, while others are struggling. Frankly, we have seen everything and very little shocks us. We decided to take a break from the norm and take a look at how the finances of the average person compare to the super wealthy, so our secured loan team were tasked with breaking it down.

We love to compare ourselves to others, and this is especially true when those other happen to be ludicrously rich. As recent studies have shown, the richest 1% now own half of the world’s total wealth – allowing them to maintain lifestyles most of us can only dream of.

In fact, during 2017 the world’s billionaires made more money than in any year in recorded history. Their wealth increased by 20% to £6.9tn according to research released in October 2018 by UBS. This only continued to grow each year, with the pandemic proving to be particularly profitable for the worlds super wealthy.

Interested to learn how you compare to the world’s mega-rich? Why not find out with our online comparison.

BREAKING DOWN THE EARNINGS OF UK BILLIONAIRES

As of 2018, there are 54 UK-based billionaires. Combined, they have a total wealth of £123,731,283,000, which is equivalent to over 6% of Britain’s GDP.

Their businesses range from fashion and technology to chemicals and online gambling, but they do have one thing in common, they’re all unimaginably wealthy.

To illustrate how this breaks down when compared to the average UK wage – £28,600 – we’ve broken down how much (and how quickly) three well-known British billionaires earn across the year.

Note: The figures for Richard Branson and James Dyson are based on their earnings and net worth changes between September 2017 and September 2018 as per Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index converted from dollars and rounded for clarity. Denise Coates’ earnings are based on Sunday Times Rich List figures 2017/2018. While these figures won’t stay consistent year on year, they offer an insight into how a billionaire’s annual income compares to an average salary.

HOW THE PANDEMIC IMPACTED BILLIONAIRES

While the world economy struggled during the pandemic, the worlds super wealthy continued to profit – actually at a faster rate than before!

The worlds 10 wealthiest people actually managed to grow their wealth from $700 billion to $1.5 trillion during the pandemic. This puts their earnings at a rate of $15,000 per second or $1.3 billion a day.

This is in stark contrast to the rest of the world, which has seen the cost of living rise and financial struggles for the high street.

HOW DO THE WORLDS SUPER RICH HANDLE DEBT?

While we look at simple financial products, to buy a property with a partner such as a residential mortgage or buy to let secured loans, the worlds super wealthy again play by totally different rules. For example, Elon Musk used complex debt instruments and actually borrowed over $13 billion to fund the purchase of twitter, despite his monster wealth!

In fact, it is actually Twitter who are on the hook for the repayments as he funded the purchase through a leveraged buyout.

HOW MUCH THE BEST-KNOWN BILLIONAIRES ARE EARNING

While it may be staggering to consider the amount of wealth that the UK’s richest people have amassed, it’s nothing compared to the fortunes of the world’s best-known billionaires.

Here’s a breakdown to show you how quickly the likes of Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg and Jeff Bezos earn the average UK wage.

Note: The breakdowns for these world-leading billionaires was calculated based on their Forbes Rich List net worth between 2017/2018 and converted from dollars. While these figures won’t stay consistent year on year, they offer an insight into how a billionaire’s annual income compares to an average salary.

A WORLDWIDE BILLIONAIRE OVERVIEW

Now you have a better understanding of the wealth held by some of the better-known British billionaires, it’s time to cast the net further to look at how this wealth is distributed across the globe.

There are over 2,000 billionaires across the world as of 2018 with a head-spinning combined wealth of £6,916,045,500,000 – that’s almost £7tn.

To gain a better understanding of the individuals in this exclusive club, let’s take a look at the wealthiest people on each continent.

HOW DO YOU COMPARE TO THE MEGA-RICH?

You’ve seen how the average UK wage compares to the income of some of its highest earners – but let’s be honest, not everyone makes that exact amount. If you want to find out more specifically how you fare vs. the mega-rich – use our online comparison for tailored results.