Australia's median wealth has fallen nearly 7% since 2020, even as the country added more than 25,000 new millionaires last year, according to a new report from Swiss bank UBS. The report highlights a growing divide between the wealthiest and the broader population.
Wealth gains concentrated at the top
The UBS Global Wealth Report 2025 found that average personal net wealth in Australia climbed by 19% so far this decade, after accounting for inflation. However, median wealth—a better measure of typical wealth—contracted by nearly 7% over the same period. This suggests that wealth gains have overwhelmingly favored those at the top of the distribution.
Globally, the report noted that close to a million new millionaires were created worldwide in 2025, a record increase in a single year. But it warned that the gains were uneven: while average wealth rose notably, median wealth declined in most markets.
Australia's position in global wealth rankings
Despite the decline in median wealth, Australian adults still have the third-highest median net wealth in the world, at nearly US$211,000 (A$306,000), behind only Luxembourg and Belgium. This is driven largely by property wealth and compulsory superannuation.
In contrast, the United States has the second-highest average wealth level globally but ranks 28th out of 30 countries by median wealth, indicating extreme inequality.
International comparison of median wealth trends
Over the past six years, median wealth has fallen in 18 of the 29 countries analyzed by UBS. Germany, the United States, and the United Kingdom saw declines of roughly 20%. Meanwhile, median wealth jumped by 50% in Japan, 20% in India, and more than 10% in South Korea.
Independent economist Saul Eslake noted that while Australia has not experienced as much widening in income inequality as many other comparable countries, wealth inequality has increased significantly. He identified housing as the biggest driver of wealth inequality.
Calls for inheritance tax to address inequality
Eslake argued that Australia's progressive income tax and transfer system helps flatten income inequality, but the tax system does little to address wealth inequality. He is among a handful of economists calling for an inheritance tax, particularly given that an estimated A$5.5 trillion in wealth will be passed from baby boomers to their children over the next 25–30 years.
“I don’t think it’s at all unreasonable that some of that is taxed on estates of $5m or $10m, with exemptions for surviving spouses or partners,” Eslake said. He also suggested replacing stamp duty on property transactions with a broadly based land tax to help reduce wealth inequality.
Impact of inequality on economic growth
Eslake noted that while it is contested whether high and rising inequality is technically bad for economies, there is growing consensus among international bodies like the IMF and OECD that beyond a certain point, widening inequality detracts from economic growth. He argued that wealthy people tend to save more, contributing less to demand-driven growth, and that populist policies—often a reaction to inequality—are almost always bad for economic growth.
