Blitz Bureau
Arecord number of millionaires could leave the United Kingdom this year as political turmoil and the potential for higher taxes under a future Labour government reduce the appeal of what was once among the top destinations for the rich.
As many as 9,500 people with at least $1 million in liquid, investable assets, will leave the country, more than double the number that left in 2023, according to provisional estimates contained in a report by migration advisers Henley & Partners.
Brexit hangover
“These figures reflect a steady accumulation of factors detracting from the UK’s appeal to high-net-worth individuals,” Hannah White, CEO of the Institute for Government, wrote in the report. “The hangover from Brexit continues to be felt, with the City of London no longer seen as the financial centre of the world.”
The report is based on data on 150,000 high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs) tracked by investment firm New World Wealth. The firm only counts people who stay in their new country more than half of the year, and focuses primarily on company founders, chairs, CEOs, presidents, directors and managing partners, according to a report by CNN.
The continuing exodus from the UK — 16,500 millionaires left between 2017 and 2023 — is part of a global mass migration of the rich that appears to be accelerating. The Henley Private Wealth Migration report found that 128,000 millionaires are set to relocate this year, beating last year’s record by 8,000.
“As the world grapples with a perfect storm of geopolitical tensions, economic uncertainty and social upheaval, millionaires are voting with their feet in record numbers,” Dominic Volek, head of private clients at Henley & Partners, said in a press release.
Only better than China
Of the 15 places with most resident millionaires, the UK is suffering more than most — only China will lose more HNWIs (15,200) in 2024 — and it’s one of just three locations, alongside Japan and Hong Kong, to have seen a net loss in the decade since 2013, according to the report. By contrast, the ranks of the wealthy have grown in the US, Canada, Australia, Germany and France over the same period.
