Global households added a record $40 trillion in wealth in 2025, pushing total household net worth to $570 trillion, according to a new report from the McKinsey Global Institute. The 7.3% jump outpaced the 5.9% average growth rate seen since 2000.
The world's overall balance sheet of assets swelled to nearly $1.8 quadrillion, also a record level, McKinsey reported in its newly released "Global Balance Sheet 2026: Imbalance and Divergence" report.
Paper Wealth Economy Hits $1.8 Quadrillion
According to The Wall Street Journal, the wealth growth was driven largely by rising equity prices. McKinsey noted that the total value is more than quadruple the value from 2000, at nominal values and market exchange rates.
The wealth growth rate is faster than GDP, which McKinsey drily noted is "posing questions about its health and stability." The gains are not uniform across countries, with household wealth per capita growing in most countries but at different rates.
Wealth Built on Paper Gains and Debt
McKinsey posted on LinkedIn that global wealth reached an all-time high in 2025, but it is built disproportionately on paper gains and a proliferation of debt. The firm described its balance sheet analysis as a forward-looking diagnostic tool for economies under strain.
"Global wealth reached an all-time high in 2025, but it is built disproportionately on paper gains and a proliferation of debt." — McKinsey & Company on LinkedIn
Our Take: Record Wealth, Uneven Gains
The numbers are staggering — $40 trillion added in a single year, and a global balance sheet approaching $1.8 quadrillion. But McKinsey's own warning is worth paying attention to. When wealth grows faster than the real economy (GDP), and much of it comes from paper gains and debt, the foundation can be shaky.
Households may feel richer on paper, but if those gains are concentrated in assets like stocks that can fall quickly, the wealth can vanish just as fast. The fact that growth is uneven across countries also means not everyone is sharing in this record wealth. In our view, this report is a reminder that bigger balance sheets don't always mean stronger economies — especially when the growth is built on debt and market gains rather than real productivity.
