Signal Only 20% of 2025 wealth growth was real capital formation; drivers split by country

Summary

MGI estimates that global household wealth hit a record $570 trillion in 2025, but the gains were mostly on paper. Just one fifth of the increase reflected real capital formation. The rest came from existing assets being revalued, and those valuations rose four percentage points faster than consumer prices, which were themselves elevated. What drove the change differed sharply by country: equity markets powered wealth gains in the United States and Canada, while falling property prices shrank paper wealth in China, France, and Germany. In the United Kingdom and Japan, inflation was the main force lifting asset values.