Highlights – Per capita financial wealth in India has increased fivefold in the last 20 years. Investment growth peaked in 2024, with a 28.7% increase.
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Household wealth across the world set new records in 2024, but India saw the fastest growth. According to the Allianz Global Wealth Report 2025, Indian households’ financial assets grew by 14.5%, the highest in eight years. This shows how rapidly India’s middle class is strengthening.
How did India outpace other countries?
Per capita financial assets in India have increased fivefold in the last 20 years. Investments grew the most in 2024, increasing by 28.7%. Insurance and pensions increased by 19.7%. Bank deposits, which still account for 54% of households’ total wealth, grew by 8.7%. After inflation, real assets increased by 9.4%, meaning people’s purchasing power increased by 40% from pre-pandemic levels. Net financial assets per capita reached $2,818 in 2024, up 15.6% from the previous year.
The report said, “India’s growing middle class is changing global wealth trends and contributing significantly to emerging markets.”
How does India compare globally?
India has shown growth, but US households accounted for half of the world’s total wealth growth in 2024. Over the past 10 years, the US contributed 47% to global wealth growth, while China accounted for 20% and Western Europe for 12%.
Allianz Chief Economist Ludovic Subran says, “Wealth growth in the US is spectacular. Half of global growth in 2024 came from US households. People think the US is lagging behind, but it leads the world in wealth growth.”
The pace of wealth growth in Japan and Western Europe has been quite slow. This is because people there do not invest as much and do not have the required share in the stock market. Therefore, the total wealth of households there has not grown as rapidly because their money is invested in safer avenues and less in riskier investments (such as stocks).
Which investment is yielding the greatest returns?
The report states that investment is the biggest way to increase wealth. However, people in every country have not been able to benefit equally from it. For example, in the US, investments account for 59% of people’s total wealth, compared to 35% in Europe and only 13% in India. This means that in India, most people keep their money in safer avenues, such as bank deposits, so their wealth does not grow as rapidly as in the US or Europe.
How much has inequality increased in India?
The wealth gap between the rich and the poor has not narrowed globally over the past 20 years. The richest 10% of people still hold approximately 60% of total wealth. The situation in India is slightly different. In 2024, the top 10% of India’s wealthiest people owned 65% of total wealth, compared to 58% 20 years ago. The gap between average and median wealth has also increased, from 2.6 to 3.1, meaning the gap between the rich and the poor has widened. Despite this, wealth in India has grown rapidly. Net financial assets per capita have increased 13-fold in the past 20 years, exceeding China’s 12-fold increase.
Future Expectations
The middle class in India is growing, and people are acquiring financial knowledge. Experts believe that wealth growth will continue. People are now investing not only in bank deposits but also in stocks and pensions. Globally, unequal wealth and differences in investment will remain challenges to inclusive growth, but overall wealth is reaching new heights.
