The number of high net worth individuals (HNWIs) -- people with net financial assets of at least USD 1 mn -- in the UAE rose 11.8% last year to reach 59,000 from 52,000 in 2004, making the UAE home to the second largest concentration of millionaires in the Middle East after Saudi Arabia.
In the Middle East, the region with the highest growth in HNWI financial wealth at 19.7% in 2005, Saudi Arabia led the growth in the number of millionaires by posting an increase of 13.5%. The number of HNWIs in Saudi Arabia grew to 80,100 versus 70,600 in 2004, according to the latest edition of the World Wealth Report.
