AsianFin -- The combined wealth of the world’s billionaires surged by approximately 17% over the past year, fueled by significant gains among ultra-wealthy individuals in the United States, which outweighed declines in China, Swiss bank UBS reported on Thursday.

According to the 2024 UBS Billionaire Ambitions Report, the total number of billionaires worldwide rose to 2,682 from 2,544 the previous year, with their collective wealth climbing to $14 trillion from $12 trillion. For context, billionaire wealth in 2015 totaled just $6.3 trillion, highlighting the exponential growth over the past decade.