In 2024, the wealth of the world’s billionaires increased by $2 trillion (£1.64 trillion), a surge three times faster than in 2023, translating to an astounding $5.7 billion a day.
This latest inequality report highlights a significant shift: the world is now on track to have five trillionaires within a decade, a marked change from last year’s prediction of just one trillionaire within the same timeframe.
The report coincides with the arrival of many political leaders, corporate executives, and the ultra-wealthy at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, which takes place annually starting Monday.
Oxfam’s analysis of billionaire wealth also comes at a time when Donald Trump has been inaugurated as U.S. president. Trump is expected to surround himself with several billionaires, including Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, and to introduce large-scale tax cuts for the wealthiest U.S. citizens.
Meanwhile, the number of people living under the World Bank’s poverty line of $6.85 a day has barely changed since 1990, with nearly 3.6 billion people—44% of the global population—still living in poverty, according to the charity.
In addition, one in ten women are living in extreme poverty (below $2.15 a day), which means 24.3 million more women than men are affected by this condition.
Oxfam cautioned that progress in alleviating poverty has stalled, and that eliminating extreme poverty could be achieved three times more quickly if inequality were reduced.
In the UK, the proportion of billionaire wealth linked to “monopolies and cronyism” is the highest among the G7 countries. In 2024, wealth in the UK grew by £35 million a day, reaching £182 billion.
The UK saw the emergence of four new billionaires, bringing the total to 57. These new billionaires include Mark Dixon of IWG, Sunder Genomal of Page Industries, Donald Mackenzie of CVC, and Jim Thompson of Crown Worldwide.
The increase in billionaire wealth is primarily driven by rising stock market values globally, with higher property values also contributing. Residential property alone accounts for about 80% of global investments.
Billionaire Wealth in 2024On a global scale, the number of billionaires increased by 204 last year, bringing the total to 2,769. Their collective wealth soared from $13 trillion to $15 trillion in just one year—the second-largest annual increase on record.
The wealth of the top 10 richest men grew by an average of nearly $100 million a day. Even if they lost 99% of their wealth overnight, they would still remain billionaires.
The wealthiest people include Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon, with a net worth of $219.4 billion, dominating the online retail market in multiple countries. Aliko Dangote, Africa’s wealthiest person with a net worth of $11 billion, has near-monopoly control over cement production in Nigeria and much of Africa, according to the report.
Oxfam argues that much of this wealth is “taken, not earned,” with 60% of it stemming from inheritance, “cronyism and corruption,” or monopoly power. The report calculates that 18% of billionaire wealth comes from monopoly power alone.
The Forbes real-time billionaires list places Elon Musk, Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, Larry Ellison, and Bernard Arnault as the wealthiest individuals. At Trump’s inauguration, Musk, Bezos, and Zuckerberg are expected to be seated close together, signaling the growing influence of tech giants on politics.
Oxfam calls for bold measures to drastically reduce inequality and integrate fairness into global economies.
Anna Marriott, Oxfam’s inequality policy lead, said, “Last year, we predicted the first trillionaire could emerge within a decade, but this shocking acceleration of wealth means the world is now on track to have at least five.
The global economic system is broken, utterly unfit for purpose as it enables and perpetuates this explosion of wealth, while nearly half of humanity continues to live in poverty.”
She urged the UK government to prioritize economic policies aimed at reducing inequality, including higher taxes on the ultra-wealthy.
“Massive funds could be raised to address inequality both in the UK and abroad, funding vital investments in public services. For the first time, with the landmark G20 agreement to collaborate on taxing the super-rich [last July], there is real momentum toward implementing fairer global taxation.”
