The Africa Wealth Report 2026

'The Great Elephant' is a reference to Shaka Zulu, who was sometimes called 'The Great Elephant'. Its an expression that could easily be used to describe his homeland South Africa due to its dominance of the continents' wealth sector.

Following a strong past two years, South Africa is now the wealthiest country in Africa by some margin with 48,200 HNWIs in residence as at June 2026, along with 131 centi-millionaires and 10 billionaires. This means SA now accounts for a substantial 38% of Africa’s total millionaires and 36% of its billionaires.

On a global view, South Africa ranks as the 34th wealthiest country on earth when it comes to millionaire residents – just behind Poland and ahead of major players like Turkey and Thailand.

Going forward, Africa’s wealth is projected to rise sharply, with billionaire numbers on the continent forecast to jump to over 120 by 2040. 

In particular, we expect strong growth in “lifestyle destinations” such as Cape Town, Marrakech, the Whale Coast, the Garden Route, Tangier, the Cape Winelands, Nairobi, Windhoek and Swakopmund.

Our projections for Namibia are especially bullish, mainly due to its tax benefits. Notably, Namibia does not tax foreign income and imposes no capital gains tax or estate duty. The capital gains exemption places it in an exclusive group alongside the UAE, the Cayman Islands, Monaco and Singapore. 

Namibia also has a very well-developed banking system and a comparatively high level of safety when compared to most other African countries. With over 40% of its land protected by national parks and conservancies, it is also one of the most ecologically friendly places on Earth, with a number of top eco-estates including Finkenstein Estate and La Muela - see more on the Rise of Namibia.

According to Andrew Amoils, head of research at New World Wealth: "Over the next decade, we expect the key wealth-creating industries in Africa to be eco-tourism & eco-estates, music & film, fintech, ecommerce, software development, AI, business process outsourcing, green tech, rare metals mining, biotech, and wealth management."

When one thinks of the king of the African savannah, one would probably think of the lion. However, another creature with a strong claim to the throne is the Martial Eagle. 

The Martial Eagle is Africa’s largest and most powerful eagle. It tops the regional food chain and rules over its domain with a regal presence.

It is also among the largest eagles of the world, along with the Harpy Eagle (South America), the Philippine Eagle (Philippines) and the Steller’s Sea Eagle (Russia and Japan). The biggest eagle ever is the Haast’s Eagle of New Zealand, which was hunted to extinction in the 1400s. 

Unfortunately, the Martial Eagle is now facing similar dangers. Martial Eagles have extremely large territories and even an area as large as the Kruger National Park can only host a small number of them. They therefore frequently nest in farmlands, where they are often unfairly targeted by farmers, even though they rarely attack livestock. Their diet consists mainly of hares, hyrax, small antelopes, monitor lizards and birds.

According to Dr Gareth Tate, manager of the Birds of Prey Programme at the Endangered Wildlife Trust: “Changes in reporting rates from bird atlas surveys suggest declines of up to 60% over the last 20 years (1987-1991 vs. 2007-present) across South Africa. Unfortunately, large protected areas are not insusceptible to these declines. For example, reporting rates in Kruger National Park, an area often considered a stronghold for Martial Eagles, recorded a 54% decline in reporting rates.”  

The Martial Eagle is currently listed as “endangered” by Birdlife International, with their populations falling fast. If current declines continue, they could go extinct within the next 20 years. 

The featured photo is of 'Amok'. He is a Martial Eagle at the Dullstroom Bird of Prey Centre. This special organization is dedicated to rescuing, rehabilitating, and releasing raptors – while also educating the public about their importance. 

• The terms ‘millionaires’ or ‘high-net-worth individuals’ (HNWIs) refer to individuals with liquid wealth of USD 1 million or more. 
• The term ‘centi-millionaires’ refers to individuals with liquid wealth of USD 100 million or more, whilst ‘billionaires’ refer to individuals with liquid wealth of USD 1 bn or more. 
• For our purposes ‘liquid wealth’ includes equities, ETFs, cash, bonds, gold, and crypto holdings - namely, items that can be cashed in quickly. 
• We exclude illiquid items such as property, family businesses and private equity, which is why our wealth figures tend to be lower than the other vendors.
• All figures as at 30 June 2026 and all in USD terms.
• HNWI figures rounded to the nearest 100.