Capgemini's World Wealth Report (WWR) 2021 shows that the number of millionaires (or high-net-worth individuals|HNWI) increased by 6.3% worldwide: right now there are more than 20 million individuals with this title. The volume of wealth of these people has also jumped 7.6% to close to $80 billion.

One of the major highlights of this year's edition of the report is the rise of North America, which has reversed the trend of the past five years by overtaking the Asia-Pacific region in both the number and volume of large fortunes. The reason for this is the rise in capital markets and government stimuli to the economy in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.

As for the type of millionaires, the WWR points to a significant weight of the so-called multimillionaires (ultra-HNWI). This segment led the growth in number and in wealth: 9.6% more and 9.1% more, respectively.

Millionaires and millionaires with medium-sized fortunes, meanwhile, grew by 6% and 8%, respectively.

And what does all this mean for firms that provide wealth management and advisory services? According to Capgemini, HNWIs have become more involved in their investments over the past 25 years, they seek more advice and want it to be increasingly comprehensive.

"In a scenario where there is a growing number of technology players dedicating themselves to wealth management, companies specialized in this activity segment need to stand out, offering consulting services supported by the most innovative technologies in the market and by hyper-personalized business models," warns Capgemini.

The tendency is that HNWIs try to make their investments themselves when the market is up, but as soon as periods of greater volatility arise they turn to specialized advice. In times of health crisis, there will therefore be a greater interest in the work done by consulting firms.

Capgemini also stresses that today's millionaires are interested in hybrid models and are increasingly looking for a mix of digital interactions and direct relationships.

"The wealth management industry must push its limits to capture the attention of clients and maximize the services provided to millionaires, who are used to the convenience and customization of services offered by BigTech," says Anirban Bose, CEO of the Financial Services Strategic Business Unit & Executive Board Member of Capgemini Group.

According to him, "investing in technology and talent is critical for wealth management firms to maintain market share, especially with the continued growth of WealthTechs and the imminent entrance of BigTechs into the industry.

Cloud, APIs, microservices, and resilient and agile business models may be some of the most sensible investments for wealth management companies. In addition, millionaires will be paying closer attention to the ESG measures of the consultancies they hire.

Still on the sustainability front, WWR 2021 shows that millionaires are looking to diversify their portfolios with alternative investments: 43% of the ultra-HNWIS and 39% of the younger HNWIS might ask their advisors for an ESG quote for the products offered by their firms.