New York is once again the most popular city for the ultra wealthy. This year, out of 2,640 billionaires on Forbes’ World’s Billionaires list, 101 have made New York City their primary residence–more than anywhere else in the world, per Forbes’ research. The Big Apple was the top residential hub for billionaires for seven years in a row, until Beijing took its place in 2021. But the Chinese capital’s reign was short-lived. New York City reclaimed its No.1 spot in 2022 and has held onto it this year.
Together, New York City billionaires are worth a collective $616.8 billion. China remains the country with most cities in the top 10, with Beijing dropping from its No. 2 spot last year to No. 3 this year, Shanghai moving to No. 4 (up from No. 5 last year, overtaking London) and Shenzhen dropping to No. 8, from the No. 6 spot a year ago. Additionally, Hong Kong moved up to No. 2 after adding just two billionaires to its tally. (We list 11 cities this year because two cities tied for the tenth-highest number of residents.)
After a sharp drop in the number of billionaire residents last year, Moscow has bounced back. The Russian capital is now home to 61 billionaire residents, up from 53 last year as Russian wealth has largely rebounded from a low in 2022 thanks to rising commodity prices outpacing the impact of sanctions from the invasion of Ukraine.
Even with flailing fortunes among Indian billionaires, mainly due to the scandal surrounding Gautam Adani, India managed to squeeze an additional city into the top ten. Delhi ties San Francisco–with 37 billionaires each–tie for the No. 10 spot, previously held by Seoul. Mumbai, meanwhile, moves up a spot, from No. 8 last year to No. 7 this year.
Forbes was unable to find primary residences for 68 of the 2,640 billionaires on the 2023 ranking.
The Cities with the Most Billionaires
#1. New York City:
101 billionaires | Since last year: -6 | Total net worth: $616.8 billion | Richest resident: Michael Bloomberg ($94.5 billion)
Despite a net loss of six billionaires since last year, New York is still the billionaires capital. Not only is it home to the most members of the three-comma-club, it is also the wealthiest billionaire city–more than $208 billion richer than runner-up Paris in terms of total wealth of billionaire residents. Almost a quarter of the city's wealth is concentrated among its reigning richest citizen, Michael Bloomberg (estimated net worth: $94.5 billion), and second-richest, Julia Koch ($59 billion). Notable drop-offs include Alex Attalah and Devin Finzer, cofounders of NFT marketplace OpenSea.
#2. Hong Kong
70 billionaires | Since last year: +2 | Total net worth: $286.8 billion | Richest resident: Li Ka-shing ($38 billion)
Hong Kong moved to the No. 2 spot this year with a net gain of two billionaires. Making a comeback are two tycoons who have benefited from China’s reopening and a boost in travel demand: Zhao Tongtong ($1.3 billion), cofounder of hotel chain operator H World Group, and Lawrence Ho ($1.2 billion), who controls Hong Kong-listed casino operator Melco Resorts. #3. Beijing
68 billionaires | Since last year: -15 | Total net worth: $247.2 billion | Richest resident: Zhang Yiming ($45 billion)
China’s capital has continued to shed billionaires at a higher rate than any other city, with the city tumbling from its No. 1 spot in 2021 to No.2 in 2022 and now landing in third place. Among those who no longer have billion-dollar fortunes: Beijing resident Zhao Weiguo. A Chinese regulator has charged Zhao, the former chair of the government-backed semiconductor conglomerate Tsinghua Unigroup, with corruption. A bankruptcy restructuring left Zhao, who was reported to have “disappeared” from public view last year, without any holdings in Tsinghua Unigroup’s companies. Zhao could not be reached for comment. The founder of TikTok-owner ByteDance, Zhang Yiming ($45 billion), though $5 billion poorer than last year, remains the city’s wealthiest citizen.
Read More at https://www.forbes.com/sites/gigizamora/2023/04/08/the-cities-with-the-most-billionaires-2023/
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