Mumbai: A recent study by Bernstein, a research firm, revealed around 60% of India’s Uber Rich wealth is still parked in real estate and gold. Uber rich individuals include Ultra High Net Worth Individuals (UHNI), High Net Worth Individuals (HNI) and the affluent class, according to the survey, as reported by ANI.
“Uber Rich own approximately $2.7 trillion in serviceable assets, approximately 60 per cent wealth still parked in real-estate and gold,” the report states.
According to the data provided in the survey report, India’s total household assets are valued at $19.6 trillion.
1% Ultra Rich hold country’s 60% assets
Out of this, $11.6 trillion, which is 59%, is held by the top wealth bracket or the Uber Rich. They account for just about 1% of Indian households. But they hold 60% of the total assets and 70% of the financial assets in the country.
Of the $11.6 trillion held by the Uber Rich, only $2.7 trillion is considered to be in serviceable financial assets like direct equity, mutual funds, insurance and bank or government deposits, the report states.
This $2.7 trillion is defined as the “Serviceable Addressable Market (SAM)” for wealth managers. This suggests that this segment of financial assets can be actively managed, advised on, or invested.
The remaining $8.9 trillion is parked in non-serviceable assets such as physical real estate, gold, promoter equity and currency assets. These areas are traditionally not managed by wealth managers or are harder to reallocate easily.
The report shows that there are around 35,000 UHNI households with a net worth of over $12 million. These households have an average income of $4.8 million and average assets of $54 million.
Opportunity for wealth managers, disparity in income
The report also states that there is a significant opportunity for Indian wealth managers, especially in servicing the country’s ultra-wealthy households.
It pointed out that income disparity in India is significant. Wealth disparity is even more striking.
The top 1 per cent earns 40 per cent of all income. The bottom majority holds a very small portion of both income and assets. Only 10% Indians or roughly around 150 million are India’s consumption class, the report claims.