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Thursday, 20 September 2018

Is Egypt the second-wealthiest country in Africa?

**#8 Egypt is the second-wealthiest country in Africa by total wealth, but a distant sixth in wealth per capita as measured in 2017, according to AfrAsia Bank’s Africa Wealth Report 2018 (pdf). South Africa led the list of the continent’s wealthiest countries. The report by the Mauritius-based bank drills into “wealth, luxury, prime property and wealth management trends in Africa.” The report estimates Africa’s luxury sector was worth USD 6 bn in 2017, including high-end cars, private jets, yachts, hotels, luxury clothing and accessories. Egypt’s luxury market is worth a paltry USD 0.3 bn compared with USD 2.2 bn for South Africa, it suggests. The Egyptian capital ranked the third richest African city with total wealth of USD 140 bn. Johannesburg and Cape Town top the list at USD 276 bn and USD 155 bn, respectively.

HNWI wealth management market: “Approximately USD 140 bn of African HNWI wealth is tied up with wealth managers and private banks,” the report estimates, saying, “we estimate the African wealth management market will grow by around 7% per annum over the next 10 years.”

Take it all with a heaping tablespoon of salt: The report, which also drills down into top luxury brands allegedly owned by the continent’s 1% (with absolutely no figures or market share) makes for fun reading. It is also entirely opaque about its data sources and methodology, citing almost invariably data provided by New World Wealth, which bills itself as a “global market research group” based in South Africa.

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