India minting millionaires at lightning speed

A new study by Boston Consulting Group found, not surprisingly, that India and China are minting millionaires faster than any other country in the world, reports India's Financial Express newspaper.

The BCG report, titled “Shaping a New Tomorrow: How to Capitalize on the Momentum of Change,” found that private wealth rose  21.6 percent in India in 2010, compared with an average 8 percent increase worldwide, the paper said. Meanwhile, the number of millionaire households in India increased 37 percent to 190,000 from 139,000 in 2009.

Nevertheless, India is still yet to break into the top 10 in terms of absolute numbers of millionaire households, and still lags far behind China in those terms. China already boasts more than a million millionaire households, and has already reached third place on the list, behind the US and Japan, the paper said.

Nor is that likely to change soon, according to BCG. The report found that India’s assets under management grew 21.6 percent in 2010, while China’s grew 29 percent. And BCG estimates that China will account for 19 percent of the overall increase in the assets under management from 2010-15, while India will account for around 8 percent.