New York is still “top of the heap” when it comes to the world’s wealthiest cities despite recent warnings from a Wall Street titan that the Big Apple’s sharp drop in quality of life could prompt a mass exodus of businesses from the area.
The city retained the top ranking in a list of the world’s top 50 cities with the largest concentration of millionaires, according to the latest World’s Wealthiest Cities Report 2025 by Henley & Partners and New World Wealth.
New York City maintains its crown, topping the global rankings with 384,500 millionaires, including 818 centi-millionaires and 66 billionaires, the report found.
The San Francisco Bay Area, which encompasses Silicon Valley, ranked second on the list with 342,000 millionaires — though it surpassed New York with 82 billionaires, according to the report.
The Bay Area has seen a staggering 98% increase in millionaires over the past decade, a figure surpassed globally only by Dubai and China’s fast-growing metropolises Shenzhen and Hangzhou.
Los Angeles also climbed the list of world’s wealthiest towns — surpassing London to secure fifth place.
According to the study, LA is home to 220,600 millionaires, including 516 centi-millionaires and 45 billionaires.
London’s decline was stark. The British capital experienced a 12% drop in its millionaire population over the last decade — relegating it to sixth position.
The United States continues to assert its dominance in wealth accumulation, claiming 11 spots among the world’s top 50 cities with the highest millionaire populations.
Chicago is the 10th richest city in the world with a millionaire population of 127,100, according to the rankings. This is the first time that the Windy City, which has been plagued in recent years by a rash of shootings, cracked the top ten — leapfrogging Chinese cities such as Beijing and Shanghai.
Meanwhile, fast-growing American wealth hubs such as Scottsdale and West Palm Beach saw remarkable millionaire population growth rates of 125% and 112%, respectively.
Miami, known for Florida’s favorable tax conditions, grew by 94% while Washington D.C. and Austin — the Texas capital which has been dubbed the “Silicon Hills” — also saw their millionaire populations surge by approximately 90%.
Despite this impressive growth, captains of industry have raised concerns about the sustainability of traditional financial centers like New York.
Larry Fink, CEO of asset management giant BlackRock, issued a stark warning this week, criticizing New York City’s handling of crime, cleanliness, and education.
Speaking to the Economic Club of New York, Fink expressed his concerns bluntly: “The city is on the verge of losing a lot of companies. I don’t believe the city has the vitality that it did before.”
Fink, who witnessed New York’s troubled era during the 1970s, stated he feels his taxes no longer support tangible improvements: “I believed that my taxes were used to help build out the city. I don’t feel that way anymore.”
BlackRock, managing about $11.6 trillion in assets, remains headquartered in Manhattan’s Hudson Yards, but around 160 Wall Street firms managing roughly $1 trillion in assets have relocated away from New York since 2019.
This trend mirrors the broader business shift away from urban cores facing increasing retail crime.
In the last decade, nearly 40% of drugstores based in New York City have shuttered while companies like Foot Locker have joined the exodus, relocating their headquarters out of the Big Apple to more business-friendly states.
