Finance
Billionaires are inheriting record levels of wealth, UBS report finds
Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on December 8, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 20, 2026
Global Banking and Finance Review
Company
Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on December 8, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 20, 2026
In 2025, billionaire heirs inherited a record $298 billion. The U.S. leads in inheritance growth, with relocations driven by quality of life and tax concerns.
ZURICH, Dec 4 (Reuters) - The spouses and children of billionaires inherited more wealth in 2025 than in any previous year since reporting began in 2015, according to UBS's Billionaire Ambitions Report published on Thursday.
In the 12 months to April, 91 people became billionaires through inheritance, collectively receiving $298 billion, up more than a third from 2024, the Swiss bank said.
"These heirs are proof of a multi-year wealth transfer that's intensifying," UBS executive Benjamin Cavalli said.
The report is based on a survey of some of UBS's super-rich clients and a database that tracks the wealth of billionaires across 47 markets in all world regions.
At least $5.9 trillion will be inherited by billionaire children over the next 15 years, the bank calculates.
Most of this inheritance growth is set to take place in the United States, with India, France, Germany and Switzerland next on the list, UBS estimated.
However, billionaires are highly mobile, especially younger ones, which could change that picture, it added.
The search for a better quality of life, geopolitical concerns and tax considerations are driving decisions to relocate, according to the report.
In Switzerland, where $206 billion will be inherited over the next 15 years according to the bank, voters on Sunday overwhelmingly rejected a proposed 50% tax on inherited fortunes of $62 million or more, after critics said it could trigger an exodus of wealthy people.
Switzerland, the UAE, the U.S. and Singapore are among billionaires' preferred destinations, UBS's Cavalli said.
"In Switzerland, Sunday's vote may have helped to increase the country's appeal again," he said.
(Reporting by Ariane Luthi and Oliver Hirt; Editing by Joe Bavier)
Inheritance is the process by which individuals receive assets, property, or money from a deceased person's estate, typically through legal means such as a will or trust.
Wealth transfer refers to the movement of assets from one individual or generation to another, often occurring through inheritance, gifts, or estate planning.
A billionaire is an individual whose net worth is equal to or greater than one billion units of currency, typically measured in dollars.
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