Yinka’s view
Africa’s wealthy class is growing in number faster even than the Gulf, according to a new report, thanks to rising commodity prices as well as resilient private enterprise.
Yet Capgemini’s World Wealth Report also revealed one of the continent’s biggest weaknesses: Rich Africans often end up seeing their countries as a place to generate capital — but not to store it. Economic dynamism has, in effect, advanced faster than the financial systems needed to retain wealth.
This happened even as many African economies grappled with currency weakness, debt burdens, and slow growth. Morocco was the standout performer, posting the continent’s fastest growth in millionaires at 16.8%, reflecting the benefits of a diversified economy, rising property values, and a deepening financial sector.
But the Capgemini data only tells part of the story. A separate report by Standard Bank, based on interviews with some of Africa’s wealthiest individuals and their advisers, offers insight into how the continent’s rich think about money. Unlike in developed markets, these high net-worth individuals are overwhelmingly self-made, built through businesses operating in volatile environments with weak infrastructure and limited access to finance. That experience shapes their approach to wealth.
Standard Bank’s report argues that Africa’s high-net-worth individuals are often less focused on accumulating wealth than on protecting it. Once profits are generated, the priority frequently shifts to diversification, hard-currency assets, and offshore investments. Moving money abroad is not necessarily a sign of pessimism about Africa’s prospects; rather, it reflects a search for stability, liquidity, and opportunities that remain scarce in many domestic markets, said Alan Wellburn, head of Wealth Management at Standard Bank.
The broader lesson is that Africa is generating entrepreneurs capable of building substantial wealth, even in difficult conditions, but still struggles with a related challenge: creating environments where that wealth can be confidently retained and reinvested.
Producing more millionaires is a sign of economic dynamism. Convincing them to keep more of their capital at home is the more important test.
Notable
- A chief economist at Henley & Partners argues that reversing the offshore capital trend will require attractive investment returns at home, as well as stronger local wealth management, financial services, and lifestyle infrastructure “so that high-net-worth individuals see Africa not only as the source of their wealth but as a safe place to grow it.”