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UK HNW confidence low in economy but higher for personal investments

With the UK falling into a recession, millionaires have low confidence in the economy - but they’re more positive about their investments than six months ago

Elwira Costello Senior Director 01/12/2022
UK millionaires are confident overall about their personal savings and investments in this environment - opportunities remain to build wealth.

Confidence in the global economy among UK High Net Worth Individuals (HNWIs) remained low in Q3, as it has throughout 2022. However, UK millionaires are much more confident about their personal savings and investments, matching their confidence levels from last winter.

Very High Net Worth Individuals (VHNWIs) with at least £5m in investable assets are particularly bullish. Those with £5-10m are significantly more confident about their finances than they were in the final quarter of 2021.

The MillionaireVue data was collected at a time of high inflation, with the inevitable recession soon to follow. While it may seem surprising that UK millionaires are confident overall about their personal savings and investments in this environment, opportunities remain to build wealth. Shared portfolios allow for easier risk management, allowing millionaires to be less affected by the macro-environment.

As interest rates are high and rising, this can make holding some high-quality stocks and bonds particularly lucrative, for example. And while we have since had the bleak Autumn Statement, the consensus is the ‘squeezed middle’ are being targeted the most, but HNWIs are “unlikely to feel much pain” according to Bowmore Asset Management.

Nevertheless, while UK millionaires are still positive about their finances in the current climate, they are less confident than they were in Q2. Two-thirds (67%) were optimistic about their personal savings and investments last quarter, but this has now dropped by three points to 64%.

Business owners will be especially impacted. Whereas CEOs and the like may have the means to acquire passive income through outside investments, there is still the reliance on employees and suppliers to keep the business afloat and not to look for more lucrative opportunities.

Consistent with previous quarters, millionaires aged 55 and above are the least confident about both the global economy and their personal finances. Now more than ever – as they live through the era of perma-crisis following Brexit, COVID-19, the war in Ukraine and more – older HNWI clients will need reassurances.

As wealth managers would expect during these uneasy times, some clients will want to prioritise shielding their portfolio from the worst of the financial storm. Yet others will be very interested to know how they can take advantage of attractively priced opportunities, as the economy starts a long journey on the road to recovery.

The Savanta HNW confidence index uses Savanta’s MillionaireVue Omnibus, a representative survey of the UK’s millionaire population of n=511 conducted in September 2022.

 

Savanta’s MillionaireVue is a quarterly omnibus with c.500 HNWIs in each of the UK, US, and China. For more information please click here.

To find out more about the work our wealth and luxury team do, or to speak to one of our wealth specialists, please click here.

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