Dubai Becomes 4th Richest City With 86,000 Millionaires

Dubai’s rapid economic expansion and strong investor inflows have positioned it as the fourth-wealthiest city in the Middle East and Africa (EMEA)—behind only London, Paris, and Milan.

According to the “The Rise of Dubai” study released on Wednesday by MCB Group, Stewards Investment Capital, and New World Wealth, the emirate is now home to 86,000 millionaires, 251 centi-millionaires, and 23 billionaires as of June 2025.

The report highlights that if current trends continue, Dubai is on course to become EMEA’s richest city by 2040. The city’s total liquid investable wealth currently stands at $1.1 trillion (Dh4 trillion), representing the combined investable assets of its residents. However, much of this wealth is still held in international markets and global banks.

Andrew Amoils, Head of Research at New World Wealth, noted that while Dubai ranks fourth in millionaire numbers across EMEA, London leads with 212,000, followed by Paris (163,000) and Milan (121,000).

Industry leaders say Dubai’s strength lies in its role as a global business hub, backed by strong regulation, advanced technology, and seamless connectivity. Thierry Hebraud, CEO of MCB, and Bilal Adam, CEO of Stewards Investment Capital, emphasized that Dubai serves as a strategic bridge between established economies and emerging markets, offering unique investment opportunities unavailable elsewhere.

The report attributes Dubai’s wealth growth to multiple factors: its safe-haven reputation, attractive tax environment, rising property values, global connectivity, inflows of foreign direct investment, first-class healthcare and education, luxury lifestyle offerings, and leadership in eco-friendly living.

This surge in prosperity has also driven population growth, with Dubai’s population surpassing 4 million last month, the highest in its history.

New World Wealth further revealed that the UAE has emerged as the world’s fastest-growing hub for family offices, hosting more than 250 family offices as of June 2025, most of which were established post-Covid by ultra-wealthy individuals from Africa, India, Russia, the UK, CIS, and the Middle East. These offices, typically viable only for centi-millionaires and billionaires, reflect Dubai’s rise as a premier global wealth destination.