How South Africa’s richest people make their money

 ·11 Apr 2016

New World Wealth, in partnership with MasterCard, has released new data on South Africa’s richest population group, showing exactly how the country’s wealthiest have made their money.

According to the report, at the end of 2015 there were 38,500 high net worth individuals (HNWIs) with a net worth more than US$1 million in the country – down 18% from 2014.

Of these individuals, 2,030 are considered multi-millionaires – a net worth higher than US$10 million.

Multi-millionaires make up 5.3% of the total HNWI population, and are on average – 56 years old – in line with the global average. However, as many as 35% of South Africa’s multi-millionaires are over 60, the report said.

When it comes to making money, South Africa’s richest people earned their wealth through real estate and construction – accounting for 20% of all wealth sources in the country.

Other important industries include financial services, basic materials and diversified interests – though the report notes that telecoms, insurance and healthcare have shown strong growth as primary sources of wealth.

These are the industries which have made the most multi-millionaires in South Africa:

Richest sources of wealth

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