, which produced the figures, defines mass-affluent as those holding liquid assets of $50,000 to $1.0 million and HNW as those holding $1.0 million and above.

The number of affluent individuals recorded an average annual growth rate of 9.2 per cent between 2014 and 2018, rising from 28.35 million in 2014 to 40.13 million in 2018, the report, called China Wealth Management: Opportunities and Risks to 2022, said.

The country is home to the second-largest affluent population in Asia and the third-largest globally, behind only the US and Japan, GlobalData noted.

Together, China and Japan are home to more than two-thirds of the region’s affluent population. However, growth in China notably overshadows that in Japan. While the number of affluent individuals in Japan is forecast to record an AAGR of 2 per cent between 2018 and 2022, China will impress with an AAGR of 9.7 per cent over the same period.

“This growth will be driven by rising levels of urbanisation, infrastructure expansion and high investment inflows in the country. Going forward, the number of Chinese affluent individuals is forecast to grow at a similar rate, reflecting the country’s positive economic growth,” Shivani Gupta, wealth analyst at GlobalData, said.