Super-rich elite add €41bn to their fortunes
SOME €41bn was added to the collective wealth of the richest 450 people in the country over the past three years, a new report has found.
And not all the big pay days were enjoyed by the high-profile super-rich who feature in the media on a regular basis, a new report commissioned by Investec Private Bank has found.
What the report calls "quiet wealth" of around €11bn was generated by farmers and other landowners from the sale of land for property and infrastructure like roads.
However, the credit squeeze and the poor performance of stock markets globally has hit Ireland's wealthiest hard in the past few months.
An over-reliance on investments in property and Irish equities has meant that some of the super-rich may have seen their portfolios decline as much as 30pc over the past 15 months.
Despite this, the combined wealth of the country's 450 richest people is estimated at €67bn by the report written by DKM Economic Consultants for Investec.
The report says that the emergence of a super-rich elite in Ireland is a relatively new phenomenon. It is estimated that there are some 450 people with more than €10m in investable assets, excluding their primary home.
Counterparts
The Irish mega wealthy are unusual compared with their international counterparts as they are self-made men and women.
The majority of the top 50 wealthiest people are still actively involved in running at least one of the businesses that made their fortune. Four out of 10 made their fortune through involvement with the construction industry or property deals.
Mark Daly of Investec Wealth Management commented: "Only 1pc of the Irish super-rich gained their wealth status through inheritance compared to 18pc for the global ultra wealthy.
"This suggests that the majority of super-rich individuals in this country are the first to experience wealth in their families on this scale."
First generation, super-rich people tend to back their own judgment and adopt an intuitive, do-it-yourself approach to investment. Because so many of the Irish mega-bucks brigade made their money from property, they are heavily overexposed to this line of investment.
Inherited
Owners of inherited wealth, on the other hand, are more likely to invest in hedge funds, private equity vehicles and other investments designed to make returns but control risk.
The report estimates that there are now 36,500 high net worth individuals in the country -- people with a minimum of $1m in free assets.
This was an 11.6pc rise on the number of high net worths in 2006. Ireland ranked eight out of 27 European countries in a list topped by Luxembourg, Denmark and Belgium.
- Charlie Weston Personal Finance Editor
