Oxfam says billionaire fortunes rise in 2024, with 4 billionaires ‘minted’ every week | Inequality News

The group’s report comes as some of the world’s political and financial elite prepare for an annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland.

Oxfam International said that the wealth of billionaires worldwide increased three times faster in 2024 compared to the previous year, at a time when some of the world’s political and financial elites are preparing to attend an annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland.

In its latest assessment of global inequality, which came as the World Economic Forum opened, Oxfam said on Monday that the combined wealth of billionaires rose by $2 trillion to $15 trillion last year.

the a reportA book titled “Taker, Not Maker” said that there are 2,769 billionaires around the world 2024An increase of 204 over the previous year. The report noted that at least four new billionaires were “registered” every week during the year, and that three-fifths of the billionaires’ wealth came from inheritance, monopoly power, or “patronage relationships.”

Oxfam expects at least five trillionaires to emerge over the next decade. A year ago, the group predicted that only one trillionaire would emerge in that period.

“The takeover of our global economy by a privileged few has reached previously unimaginable levels. Failure to stop billionaires is now creating soon-to-be billionaires. The rate of accumulation has not accelerated,” Amitabh Behar, executive director of Oxfam International, said in a statement. “Not only have the wealth of billionaires increased – tripled – but their power has also accelerated.”

The group warned that US President-elect Donald Trump’s policies “aim to fan the flames of inequality even further.”

Oxfam said that the wealth of a single billionaire increased on average by $2 million per day. The 10 richest billionaires are getting richer at a rate of $100 million per day. She added that even if they lost 99% of their wealth overnight, they would still be billionaires.

On the other hand, the report said that the number of people living below the poverty line set by the World Bank “has barely budged” since the 1990s, and that the number of people living below the poverty line set by the World Bank “has barely budged” since the 1990s. People are hungry Is on the rise.

The report is based on data from sources including billionaire wealth estimates prepared by the American business magazine Forbes and data from the World Bank.

The World Economic Forum meeting in the Alpine village of Davos, which begins on Monday, is expected to host about 3,000 participants, including business people, academics, government officials and civic group leaders.

Trump, who visited Davos twice during his first term and is scheduled to be sworn in on Monday as well, is expected to participate in the forum event via video on Thursday. He has long advocated Wealth accumulation – Including his own – Billionaire Elon Musk is considered one of his senior advisors.

“What you’re seeing at this moment is a billionaire president being sworn in today, with the support of the richest man. It’s very much the crown jewel of the global oligarchs,” Oxfam’s Behar said, referring to Trump and Musk.

“It’s not about a specific individual. It’s the economic system we’ve created where billionaires are now largely able to shape economic policies and social policies, which ultimately gives them more and more profits,” he added.

The group called on governments to impose taxes on the rich to reduce inequality and extreme wealth, and to “dismantle the new aristocracy.” He also called for steps such as breaking up monopolies, capping CEO pay, and regulating companies to ensure they pay a “living wage” to workers.