How many billionaires call UAE their home? New report reveals a surprising number
Dubai climbs the global wealth map as fortunes continue to shift
DUBAI – The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is home to 52 billionaires with a combined fortune of $201 billion, putting the country among the world’s top 15 billionaire markets, according to Altrata’s Billionaire Census 2026.
The figures offer a snapshot of the country’s growing importance as a global centre for wealth, business and investment. Despite a decline in the number of billionaires, the UAE remained ahead of most markets worldwide in terms of billionaire population and wealth.
The UAE’s billionaire population fell 1.9 percent year-on-year in 2025, while their combined wealth reached $201 billion. The country accounted for around 1.4 percent of the world’s 3,795 billionaires and approximately 1.3 percent of the global billionaire fortune of $15.1 trillion.
The 13th edition of Altrata's Billionaire Census 2026 is here.
— Altrata (@AltrataOfficial) August 27, 2026
Billionaire wealth reached a record $15.1tn in 2025, with AI investment as one of the biggest drivers. Get the full findings - https://t.co/WcnVISf5kW
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Dubai’s ranking
Dubai stood out even further on the global wealth map, ranking joint eighth among cities worldwide by billionaire population, alongside Shenzhen. The emirate was home to 43 billionaires in 2025, up from 41 a year earlier.
Only New York, Hong Kong, San Francisco, London, Singapore, Los Angeles and Beijing ranked ahead of Dubai. The increase came even as the UAE as a whole recorded a modest decline in its billionaire population.
Altrata said the changing distribution of billionaires is being influenced by the globalisation of business and technology, alongside the increasing mobility of capital. Major cities continue to draw wealthy individuals through their entrepreneurial networks, financial services and high-end lifestyle infrastructure.
Dubai and Istanbul were among the notable billionaire centres highlighted in the report, reflecting the growing prominence of Asian and emerging wealth hubs in the global rankings.
Regional wealth
The UAE’s position comes as the wider Middle East recorded growth in its billionaire population during 2025. The region was home to 254 billionaires, a 5 per cent increase from the previous year.
Altrata attributed much of the growth to economic diversification away from oil and major sovereign infrastructure programmes, which helped attract capital and support new wealth creation, particularly in the UAE and Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia ranked ahead of the UAE by billionaire population, with 59 billionaires whose combined wealth stood at $175 billion. However, overall billionaire wealth across the Middle East declined 4 percent to $700 billion during 2025. The report linked the fall to weaker energy prices and underperforming regional equity markets, with oil prices ending the year almost 20 percent lower, their biggest annual decline since 2020.
Globally, billionaire numbers rose 8.2 percent to a record 3,795 in 2025, marking the strongest annual increase in five years. Their combined wealth surged 12.8 percent to $15.1 trillion.
The US remained the largest billionaire market with 1,265 billionaires, followed by China with 363 and Germany with 221. The 15 countries with the largest billionaire populations accounted for 83 percent of global billionaire wealth.
AI boosts fortunes
Artificial intelligence was also identified as a major factor behind the expansion of billionaire wealth. Among 150 listed companies that contribute most significantly to billionaire fortunes, businesses making meaningful investments in AI recorded 23 percent higher market capitalisation growth than those that did not across 2024 and 2025.
Wealth has become increasingly concentrated among the world’s richest individuals. The 29 billionaires whose fortunes exceeded $50 billion held a combined $4.1 trillion in 2025, representing 27 percent of total billionaire wealth, compared with 7.2 percent in 2017.
Altrata noted that billionaire fortunes are generally concentrated in company ownership rather than cash. Around 73 percent of the average billionaire portfolio consists of stakes in listed or privately owned companies, while liquid assets account for roughly a quarter.
The report also found that one in five billionaires worldwide was born outside the country where they currently live and where their primary business is based, highlighting the increasingly international nature of global wealth.