UK's 50 richest families hold more wealth than 50% of population, analysis finds

Equality Trust says billionaires getting 'ludicrously' richer, with top two now wealthier than whole of 1990 rich list

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The number of billionaires in the UK has grown sharply — from 15 in 1990 to 165 in 2024 — at the same time as inequality in the UK’s overall wealth distribution has dramatically increased, analysis has found, said a report published by the UK Guardian.

Timed to coincide with the Sunday Times’ rich list, the Equality Trust’s investigation also found that billionaires have become “ludicrously” more wealthy, with their average wealth rocketing by more than 1,000% over the same period.

The top 50 richest families in the UK now hold more wealth than the poorest half of the population, comprising more than 34 million people. In 2024, the two richest UK billionaires held more wealth between them than all the billionaires in the 1990 rich list combined.

"Our analysis also shows the vampiric nature of extreme wealth, which is completely incompatible with the health and well-being of the nation," said Priya Sahni-Nicholas, co-executive director of the Equality Trust. "Property, inheritance and finance account for over half of total billionaire current wealth: sources of wealth creation that are responsible for large-scale planetary and community destruction.