How much wealth you need to join the richest 1% around the world

The ceiling in the US that needs to be broken to join the richest 1% is now at least $5.8 million, up nearly 15% from 12 months ago, according to research from Knight Frank.

Among the richest economies, Monaco retains its top spot for the highest threshold world wide at $12.8 million, and increase of 3.2% from last year, says Bloomberg in a report.

Citizens in Luxembourg and Switzerland only needs more than $8 million to join the club,  according to the property broker's 2024 Wealth Report.

The findings underscore how rebounding markets in the US and other Western nations are widening the gap between rich and poor countries. 

Monaco's gross domestic product per person of roughly $240,000 is more than 900 times greater than that of East Africa's Burundi, according to World Bank data.

Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine damaged a global economy just recovering from the pandemic, sending prices for energy and food surging. 

While that caused problems worldwide, poorer nations that have to import those goods were especially hard hit as borrowing costs increased.

Still, not everyone felt the squeeze. 

The world's 500 richest people added $1.5 trillion to their combined fortunes last year, with Tesla Inc. Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk adding the most, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

"Our findings confirm the substantial differences in wealth distribution between countries," Knight Frank said in its report. "Expect greater policy focus on where wealth is located, how it is distributed across economies and how governments can both tax it and encourage its growth."