Seoul, Dec 14
The number of South Koreans holding more than 1 billion won ($676,818) in financial assets rose more than 3 per cent last year to nearly 480,000, a report showed on Sunday.

According to a wealth report by the research institute of the KB Financial Group, an estimated 476,000 individuals held at least 1 billion won in financial assets as of end-2024, representing 0.92 percent of the total population, reports Yonhap news agency.

The figure marked a 3.2 per cent increase from a year earlier and more than tripled from 130,000 in 2011, when the survey began.

Their combined financial assets totalled 3,066 trillion won, up 8.5 percent from a year earlier, accounting for 60.8 percent of total household financial assets nationwide.

"The growth rate of the wealthy individuals' financial assets was nearly double that of overall household financial assets," the institute said. "Wealth accumulation among the rich has been markedly faster than among the general population."

The report showed that 32,000 people held financial assets worth between 10 billion and 30 billion won, while 12,000 individuals owned more than 30 billion won worth of financial assets.

According to in-depth interviews by the institute with 400 wealthy individuals conducted in July and August, 54.8 percent of their assets were allocated to real estate and 37.1 percent to financial assets.

Asked about their investment performance over the past year, 34.9 percent said they posted gains, up 2.7 percentage points from last year, amid a strong local stock market.

Looking ahead, 55 percent of the respondents cited stocks as the most promising investment over the next year, followed by gold and jewelry with 38.8 percent and residential housing with 35.5 percent.

Stocks also topped the list of the most attractive longer-term investment options, selected by 49.8 percent of the respondents, which marked a sharp increase from last year's 35.5 percent, the report said.

Number of high net worth individuals in S. Korea grows over 3 pc to nearly 480,000