The new geography of wealth: where entrepreneurs now prefer to store capital

The global wealth map is changing. According to the HSBC Global Entrepreneurial Wealth Report 2025, 59% of entrepreneurs plan to move some assets abroad, 57% are considering changing their country of residence, and 49% are considering expanding their business abroad. The study, which HSBC conducted among 2,939 business owners in 15 countries, shows that wealthy people are building a new geography of capital, where access to liquidity, tax flexibility and the stability of financial systems are not borders and passports.

"Growing wealth is accelerating international mobility and we expect this trend to continue, strengthening existing corridors and creating new ones," notes Paul Fairfall, Head of Ultra High Net Worth at HSBC Private Bank. The report's data supports these hopes: 73% of respondents already operate in a foreign jurisdiction, 69% have moved some assets and 55% have changed or plan to change tax residency.

HSBC notes that entrepreneurs have no plans to reduce their international presence despite political constraints. The report says that the globalization of capital is changing shape from a vertical system of influence to a distributed network of capital and business routes. While the model used to be linear, with capital flowing to Western financial centers, it has now become networked, with money circulating between regional hubs in Asia, the Middle East and Europe.

According to the report, Singapore became the leader in attracting capital - it was chosen by 15% of respondents. The UK and Switzerland (11% each) hold the position of the main European destinations. These jurisdictions form the core of a new financial geography that connects the East, the Middle East and Europe.

At the same time, HSBC records a marked weakening of financial ties between the world's two largest economies: only 6% of Chinese respondents plan to transfer assets to the US, and only 1% of American respondents plan to allocate capital to China.

Unlike in the past, when this axis determined the movement of global capital, today entrepreneurs prefer to develop regional routes. For China, the key partners are Indonesia, UAE and Saudi Arabia, where 79 to 83% of businessmen are interested in cooperation. For the US - India, Indonesia and Malaysia (69 to 88%).

Singapore is a major beneficiary of private capital reallocation, with one in seven of those surveyed by HSBC citing it as their preferred location for asset allocation - more than any other jurisdiction.

Capital is coming to Singapore not only from Southeast Asia, but also from India, the Middle East and mainland China. The HSBC report notes that entrepreneurs choose Singapore for its financial stability, legal protection and political neutrality. This is facilitated by a transparent tax system and a robust currency regime, making the country a bastion of predictable jurisdiction in an unstable region.

Singapore has already gone beyond classical private banking. Family offices and trust structures are actively developing here: more than 150 such companies were registered in 2024 alone, and now they manage assets worth tens of billions of dollars. According to HSBC, they are becoming the foundation of a new financial infrastructure where capital is not just preserved, but where long-term strategies for its growth and transfer are built.

In the new architecture of global wealth, Singapore has indeed become the "new Switzerland of Asia" - a center of trust and capital protection, but with a different dynamic: its financial system is evolving with the technology economy and linking Asia, the Middle East and Europe.

While Asia and the Middle East are shaping new capital routes, Europe is realigning its centers to the new logic of global wealth. London and Zurich remain the most important hubs in this network - not as places where super profits flow, but as infrastructures of trust and legal stability. The bank emphasizes that traditional European hubs retain their importance because of their access to global capital, sophisticated trust systems and professional expertise. It is these qualities that allow London and Zurich to remain entry points to global markets for entrepreneurs diversifying their wealth.

London retains its status as a key hub for international finance and private equity. It benefits from the depth of markets, transparent law and a sophisticated trust and advisory ecosystem that allows for simultaneous asset structuring, capital raising and risk management. HSBC notes that the UK is one of the few Western jurisdictions where wealthy individuals are moving not only assets but also family offices.

If financial London is about flexibility and access to capital, Zurich is about resilience and privacy. The HSBC report notes that Swiss banks retain their reputation as reliable partners even as global transparency standards tighten. For international entrepreneurs, this reputation is becoming an asset in its own right - it is valued in the same way as liquidity.

Large entrepreneurs are becoming increasingly mobile - their personal and corporate wealth transcends national boundaries. According to HSBC, 56% of those surveyed already live in more than one country, and 57% are considering additional citizenship or tax residency. A further 49% plan to enter new markets within a year.

The main centers of this movement are Asia and the Middle East. The report notes that this is where programs are taking shape that allow not only capital but also owners to move: from "golden visas" to preferential regimes for family offices. For many, the choice of a new country is not about taxes, but about business security, political predictability and the opportunity to diversify legacies between generations.

HSBC emphasizes that wealth management is becoming a multi-layered process, with entrepreneurs integrating financial, legal and personal decisions into one system. Country of residence, ownership structure and asset allocation are now seen as interconnected elements of a long-term strategy. Geographic diversification is becoming the very layer of protection that only banks used to provide.

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor