Europe and America Continent: Where is the number of billionaires growing the fastest?

The number of dollar billionaires is increasing and showing no signs of slowing down. Global billionaire population increased from 2,723’ in 2021’ to 3,110’ in 2026’; That's only in five years. %An increase of 14’.

Speed is expected to increase. Knight Frank’'s 2026 Asset ReportThe number of billionaires over the next five years, according to ’ %It will increase by 26 to reach 3,915’ in 2031.

Europe will be one of the main drivers of this growth. The number of European ​​ billionaires 2026’da 780’den 2031’de %It is expected to increase by 27 to 994’e.

Liam Bailey, head of global research at Knight Frank’, said “ is witnessing one of the most significant shifts in global wealth distribution in modern history.

Which countries will see the biggest increase in the number of billionaires? How does ’'s billionaire growth compare to America's?

The report tracks the top 20 countries with the fastest growth in forecasts. Eight of them are in the European ’ and dominated by the Scandinavian countries.

Saudi Arabia among 20 billionaires %It is at the top of the list with an increase of 183, and by 2031 the number of billionaires will increase from 23’ to 65’.

Nordic countries are driving the growth of Europe’

Poland is the leader of the European ’. More than double the number of billionaires %It is expected to increase from 13’ to 29’ with an increase of 123.

Sweden is second in the European ’ and third worldwide, growing 81% from 32’ to 58’. This is followed by Denmark, which rose 75 percent from 12’ to 21’.

Norway, the number of billionaires %With an increase of 53’ from 17’ to 26’, it strengthens Scandinavian rule. Three of the four fastest growing European countries are from Scandinavian countries.

Number of billionaires in Austria %An increase of 50’ will increase from 12’ to 18’. This is followed by Spain with 40 percent growth and will reach 53’ at 2031’. EuropeAnother major economy of ’, ItalyThe number of ’'s billionaires is projected to increase from 61’ to 82’.

Turkey, which is a candidate country for EU’, is expected to grow by 31 percent from 35’ to 46’.

These rankings are based on five-year growth rates. That's why there are no big economies like Britain, Germany and France. For example, Germany was at the top of Europe's ’ with 171 billionaires in 2025, according to Forbes’.

When the same 20 countries are ranked by the total number of billionaires in 2031, India leads with 313 billionaires, followed by Australia and Singapore with 85’er billionaires.

Among the European countries on the list, Italy ranks first with 82 billionaires. Sweden’ is expected to pass Spain’ with 53 points to reach 58 points.

Bailey pointed out that despite major geopolitical shocks and inflationary pressures, private capital showed extraordinary resilience. Its latest results reflect a deep structural momentum in wealth creation worldwide.

Number of billionaires: Europe and the Americas

World leader in Asia-Pacific billionaires. 1,116 billionaires in 2026 %It makes up 36’.

Do this for me %With 34 followed by the continent of America, in North America and %It is divided between 3 and Latin America. Europe makes up a quarter of the world's billionaires.

By 2031, the number of European ’ billionaires will rise from 780 ’ to 994 ’, approaching 1,000 ’. With a slight increase in global share %It will be 25.4’e.

North America will increase the number of billionaires from 995 ’ to 1,089 ’. But its share from ’ %It will fall to 27.8’e, which will make it the only region where its share falls.

Rory Penn, head of the Knight Frank Special Office at “, said that what we are seeing on the ground is an increase in wealth creation in a more complex global economic environment.

The “Ultra rich are becoming noticeably more mobile, but the list of markets where they feel really comfortable investing or basing their family has narrowed.”

Security and rule of law

The report highlights that the most advanced families now split their wealth across multiple offices (typically the Americas, Europe and Asia Pacific). This diversity stems from the deep need for security and the rule of law.

Despite the high taxes and political inconsistency in “, in the words of an Australian mining billionaire, while other global investors increasingly see Europe’ as a museum, not a place to invest in ’, some prominent families are still flocking to London‘, as ’ is still the rule of law.

China warns UK government to treat British Steel owners fairly

China warned the UK government on Monday that two days after British officials took control of the company, British Steel’ would treat Chinese owners fairly or risk damaging investors' trust in the country.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry made this comment as government-appointed executives raced to prevent British Steel’ from shutting down its last two blast furnaces in Britain, which produce unprocessed steel from raw materials in ’.

Parliament on Saturday passed legislation authorizing the government to take control of the company and its Scunthorpe steel plants from Jingye Group’, which has owned British Steel’ since 2020. Jingye still owns the company, but British authorities have taken control of day-to-day operations.

"We hope that the British government will treat Chinese companies that invest and operate in ’ in a fair and equitable manner, protect their legitimate rights and interests, and refrain from politicizing and over-security of economic and commercial cooperation so as not to affect the confidence of Chinese businesses in investing and cooperating in “ in the United Kingdom," Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said at a weekly press conference in ’, Beijing.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer’'s spokesman Dave Pares said on Monday that although Jingye’ is still the owner of Scunthorpe facilities in Northeast England, expropriation of ’ is a likely option in the short term. He added that the government hopes to find a private investor in the long run.

British Steel announced on Monday that Scunthorpe’ has appointed a new executive team focused on providing “ with consistent and professional leadership.

Allan Bell and Lisa Coulson, two longtime executives of British Steel’, have been appointed interim CEO’ and chief commercial officer of the company. The appointments were approved by Trade Minister Jonathan Reynolds.

Bell, who has worked at the Scunthorpe steel plant for 14 years, said his main goal was to ensure the continuation of steel production at the plant.

"Our immediate priorities are to secure the raw materials we need to continue blast furnace operations, ensure we have dedicated personnel to operate these furnaces, and maintain the highest levels of health and safety for our workforce," Bell said in a statement.

Starmer took a dramatic step on Saturday by recalling Parliament from the spring break to pass the emergency law authorizing the government to take control of British Steel’. Officials were worried about the plant's future after Jingye’ stopped ordering the iron ore and coking coal needed to keep the furnaces running.

The fact that it is difficult and expensive to restart after the blast furnaces are closed raises concerns that ’ may lose its ability to produce the high-quality unprocessed steel needed by builders and railways, as the government seeks to stimulate economic growth. Other British steelmakers are already in the process of switching to electric arc furnaces that produce steel from scrap metal.

Pares said the government is now confident that the plant will get the raw materials it needs to continue working for now. Shipments of iron ore pellets and coking coal have reached Immingham port and will reach Scunthorpe’, about 20 miles (32 kilometers) away in the coming days, London’da told reporters.

How could Trump’'s tariffs affect the earnings of the upcoming major U.S. banks?

The first-quarter earnings season will begin later today with major U.S. banks, including JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo, followed by Bank of America, Citigroup and Morgan Stanley next week. After a turbulent week at Wall Street’, the results of these leading lenders will provide critical insights into the broader economic impact of President Trump’'s wide-ranging tariffs on business sentiment and outlook.

Analysts expect banks to deliver strong results in the first three months of the year, during which time the U.S. economy will still be resilient. However, with a more cautious tone expected due to rising economic uncertainties, attention is likely to shift towards forward direction. Growth outlooks, an important benchmark for investors, are expected to be revised downwards when assessing the long-term effects of the trade cut.

Prior to the recent tariff-driven market turmoil, the banking sector was among the stronger performers, backed by steady credit growth, improved liquidity conditions, and an increase in mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activities. As of February 19, shares of JPMorgan and Wells Fargo’ are approx. %It was valued at 13. However, in the midst of the escalating trade war ignited by Trump’'s tariff announcements, both stocks While depreciating more than ’, the sentiment was reversed.

Tariff-related uncertainties likely to put pressure on earnings

Following last week's mutual tariff announcement, Morgan Stanley analyst Betsy Grasek downgraded the U.S. banking sector's rating from ‘cazip’ to ‘compliant’. In a note to “, trade developments are moving our base scenario towards a serious gross domestic product slowdown, and with the risk that our bearish scenario will increase sharply, ” wrote. Grasek added that investment banking revenues may be more susceptible to recession risks than traditional lending.

Dilin Wu, a research strategist at ’, said economic uncertainty and rising recession risks from the tariff war could stifle credit demand. Wu said banks may need to face higher credit loss provisions that will further reduce “financial performance, adding that volatility in financial markets caused by uncertainties about ” tariffs will likely hamper capital market activities, negatively impacting investment banking revenues, especially mergers and acquisitions and equity issuances.

Investors' attention will likely focus on banks' perspectives and guidance on signs of the long-term impact of tariffs. Kyle Rodda, senior market analyst at Capital.com’, wrote in an email: “These hard facts mean that markets need to price the blow to corporate profits; The upcoming U.S. reporting period (launched unofficially by several U.S. banks on Friday) will be closely monitored in terms of declines in earnings and revision or complete removal of guidance.”

The Fed is wary of further interest rate cuts

The Federal Reserve ’'s interest rate path has become even more complicated as tariffs have increased expectations that inflationary pressures will renew. On Thursday, Boston Federal Reserve Bank President Susan Collins signaled that the central bank could delay further expansion: “Renewed price pressures may delay further normalization of policy, as confidence is needed that tariffs will not destabilize inflation expectations.”

While banks often benefit from high interest rates thanks to improved net interest margins, tighter policies can slow down credit growth, putting pressure on household spending and broader economic activity. As a result, estimates of banks' net interest income (NII) (the difference between what they earn from loans and what they pay on deposits) will likely be more prudent. Analysts at Bank of America’ expect a cautious stance from the management when the first quarter results are announced.

Bank earnings forecasts

Despite the negative winds caused by tariff uncertainty, bank earnings are expected to remain strong in the first quarter and all economic impacts of tariff increases are likely to occur later in the year.

According to consensus estimates compiled by Reuters, JPMorgan ’'s earnings per share (EPS) is 4.61 $ (€4.08) is expected to report; This is compared to the same period last year. %It represents an increase of 3.8’. Wells Fargo’'s EPS’ %It is expected to rise by 3.3 to $1.24 (€1.1). Bank of America’, compared to the previous year %With an increase of 8’, EPS’ is expected to report $0.82 (€0.73). Citigroup’'s earnings this quarter %It is expected to reach $1.86 (165 euros) with an increase of 18. by Morgan Stanley’nin EPS’de %It is expected to reach $2.22 (€1.97) with a 10 increase.