Britain: Millionaires apparently flee the island

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Financial District in London: Europe, the Middle East or Asia preferred

Photo: Simon Dawson / REUTERS

In 2022, 1,400 people with assets of more than one million dollars are said to have left the UK.

This is reported by the British newspaper The Times, citing an investigation by the consulting firm Henley & Partners.

Experts estimate that around 737,000 millionaires currently live in the UK.

The recent exodus continues a trend that began shortly after the Brexit vote in 2016.

Since then, an estimated 12,000 millionaires have left the island to settle elsewhere.

According to the information, among them are dozens of well-paid bankers whose employers had relocated their jobs to Europe in the wake of Brexit.

According to the assessment of the European Banking Authority, transfers from London are one of the main reasons why the number of European bankers with an income of more than one million euros per year rose by more than 40 percent in 2021, the newspaper further reports.

Britain was once a magnet for the wealthy, who favor the rule of law and relative political stability as much as light regulation.

In addition, the time zone is almost ideal for doing business with employees and customers all over the world.

But in the meantime the disadvantages of British isolation seemed to be having a clear impact, writes the Times.

"Now that the real longer-term consequences of Brexit are being felt, we are seeing an increased movement of wealthy British citizens looking to reclaim their EU status by gaining EU residency or citizenship through investment," said Stuart Wakeling, Head of Henley & Partners' London office.

While world-travelling millionaires have historically settled in the UK, most are now looking to the Middle East and Asia.

According to Henley & Partners, the United Arab Emirates saw the largest influx of high net worth individuals last year.

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