UBS published its Global Wealth Report 2026 on 30 June 2026, the 17th edition, showing global personal wealth rose 10.8% in US dollar terms in 2025. EMEA led regional growth at 17.5%, ahead of the Americas (8.5%) and APAC (5.9%). The number of USD millionaires grew 1.5% — almost a million new millionaires worldwide — with the United States alone adding more than 440,000.
Summary
- What UBS published on 30 June
- Where wealth grew fastest
- Almost a million new millionaires
- What it means for the order book
- The Americas, Brazil included
- FAQ
What UBS published on 30 June
The Global Wealth Report 2026 reached its 17th edition on 30 June 2026, and the headline number is unambiguous: global personal wealth grew 10.8% in dollar terms in 2025. UBS's survey covers 56 markets, representing more than 92% of global wealth — a large enough sample to serve as a reliable gauge of the purchasing power that underwrites the superyacht market.
The jump stands out against the prior year's baseline. The Global Wealth Report 2025, published on 18 June 2025, had recorded 4.6% growth in global wealth for 2024. The 2026 edition more than doubles that pace — a figure that matters to any business dependent on the confidence and disposable capital of high-net-worth families, from charter brokers to new-build yards.
Where wealth grew fastest
Growth was uneven across regions in 2025. The table below summarises UBS's regional figures:
| Region | Personal wealth growth in 2025 |
|---|---|
| EMEA (Europe, Middle East, Africa) | 17.5% |
| Americas | 8.5% |
| Asia-Pacific (APAC) | 5.9% |
| Global average | 10.8% |
EMEA led by a wide margin, growing at nearly double the global average. The Americas came in slightly below the world figure, and APAC closed the year as the slowest-growing of the three regions, though still positive. For the yacht industry, that regional spread helps explain why the Mediterranean and the wider EMEA charter circuit remain such a strong demand pole: it is exactly where wealth grew fastest.
Almost a million new millionaires
The report also tracks how many people crossed the USD 1 million net-worth threshold. In 2025, the global count of dollar millionaires grew 1.5% — the equivalent of almost a million new people entering that bracket in a single year. The United States alone accounted for more than 440,000 of those new millionaires, close to half of the entire global increase.
That figure matters beyond the headline: it is the demographic base from which today's first-time buyers of mid-size yachts and seasonal charter clients are drawn — and, a few years on, the pool from which superyacht order books recruit their next owners.
What it means for the order book
The link between rising wealth and yacht demand is not a standalone hypothesis. Knight Frank's Wealth Report 2026, published 23 April 2026, devoted a dedicated feature to superyachts and private jets as markers of the wealthy's "upward mobility." Boat International's Global Order Book 2026, published 11 December 2025, had already shown the supply side reacting: average length and tonnage under construction at record highs, with yard slots committed through 2028-2029.
Denison Yachting's own 2025 Year in Review, published 3 February 2026, put a number on the brokerage side of that same trend: 470 yachts of 79ft/24m-plus sold in 2025, up 19.9% from 392 the year before. Supply, demand and now the wealth data behind them are all pointing the same direction at once.
The Americas, Brazil included
UBS groups Brazil within its Americas bucket, the region that grew 8.5% in 2025 — behind EMEA, but still a healthy pace. For an international readership tracking where the next wave of charter and new-build clients originates, the Americas figure is a reminder that the growth story extends well beyond the traditional US and European client base that dominates Mediterranean marinas each summer.
Data in this article current as of July 2026, based on UBS's Global Wealth Report 2026.
FAQ
What is UBS's Global Wealth Report 2026? It is the 17th edition of UBS's annual report on personal wealth worldwide, published 30 June 2026. The survey covers 56 markets, representing more than 92% of global wealth, and measures both total wealth growth and the number of people crossing the USD 1 million net-worth threshold each year.
How much did global wealth grow in 2025? 10.8% in dollar terms, according to UBS — more than double the 4.6% growth recorded in the prior year's report, covering 2024. It is the largest annual jump in the report's recent editions, driven mainly by the EMEA region's performance.
Which region grew wealth fastest? EMEA (Europe, Middle East, Africa) led with 17.5% growth in 2025, well above the global average of 10.8%. The Americas grew 8.5% and Asia-Pacific 5.9% — the slowest of the three, though still a gain.
How many new millionaires appeared in 2025? The global count of dollar millionaires grew 1.5%, equivalent to almost a million new people in a single year. The United States accounted for more than 440,000 of those new millionaires, close to half of the entire global increase reported by UBS.
Why does a wealth report matter to yachting trade coverage? Because demand for superyachts, charter and luxury vessels tracks closely with wealth creation among high-net-worth families. Boat International's Global Order Book 2026 already showed record length and tonnage under construction before UBS confirmed the scale of the 2025 wealth jump.
Does the report break out Brazil separately? No. UBS groups Brazil within its wider Americas bucket, which grew 8.5% in 2025. No country-specific figure for Brazil was published in this edition, though the region's overall growth places Brazil within one of the report's three tracked blocks.
Is wealth growth even within each region? UBS publishes aggregate growth by region — 17.5% for EMEA, 8.5% for the Americas, 5.9% for APAC — not a country-by-country breakdown in this release. Variation within each bloc likely exists but falls outside the headline figures published on 30 June 2026.
Where can I read the full UBS report? The Global Wealth Report 2026 is available on UBS's official media site, published 30 June 2026. It is the primary source for every figure cited in this article, including regional growth rates and the total count of new millionaires worldwide.
Voguer recommends
The wealth growth UBS measured helps explain why 2026 continues to be a record year for the yacht industry, from shipyard backlogs to seasonal charter demand. For further reading, see Wealth Report 2026: Superyachts and Jets as Wealth Markers, UBS Global Wealth Report 2025 and the Brazilian Yacht Buyer, Global Order Book 2026: 1,093 Yachts Under Construction, The 2026 European Season Begins and June in the Mediterranean: The 2026 Season Opens. To explore international fleet and destinations, visit voguer.yachts; for charter in Brazil, see voguer.com.br.