The number of British millionaires has plummeted to its lowest level since the 2008 financial crisis, raising concerns about the country’s economic environment for wealth creators.
| PULSE POINTS |
❓ WHAT HAPPENED: The number of millionaires in the United Kingdom has fallen below 450,000, the lowest since the 2008 financial crash. 📰 DETAIL: According to the Adam Smith Institute (ASI), the number of millionaires in Britain fell to 442,000 in 2025. This constitutes a seven percent decrease from the previous year. In 2021, the number of millionaires in Britain peaked at 1.07 million. The Adam Smith Institute’s ‘millionaire tracker’ measures the number of people in Britain with a net worth of £1 million (~$1,329,580) or more in assets (cash, investments, property, pensions). “The decline in millionaires may be greeted as a success by some on the Left, but it should instead be viewed as a warning signal. 💬 KEY QUOTE: “There has [also] been a well-documented trend of high net-worth individuals either leaving Britain or no longer choosing to move here… Millionaires are leaving the country for a number of reasons, including the abolition of non-dom tax status, high levels of general taxation, and a hostile culture for wealth creators… Every millionaire that leaves means less capital for British businesses, fewer international connections, and weaker entrepreneurial spirit in the economy.” – Mitchell Palmer, economist at the Adam Smith Institute. 🎯 IMPACT: The decline in millionaires is likely to shrink the British tax base, leading to rising taxes for people on more modest incomes. However, given the leftward shift of the British government under the new Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, tax rises to squeeze remaining residents are more likely than tax cuts to make the country less unattractive to successful people. Earlier this month, it was reported that Prime Minister Burnham was planning a tax raid worth $51 billion. The decline in millionaires underscores the shared perception that Britain is increasingly hostile to wealth creation. |
Image by Lauren Hurley / No 10 Downing Street.
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