While Asia-Pacific continues to power ahead as one of the world’s leading wealth generators, the Capgemini 2025 World Wealth Report presents a more complex picture of what lies beneath the surface, where wealth generation is colliding with digital disruption, client expectations are evolving and an intergenerational wealth transfer looms.

In 2024, the number of high-net-worth individuals ( HNWIs ) globally rose by 2.6%, with their collective wealth increasing by 4.2%. Asia-Pacific played a critical role in this expansion. The region’s HNWI population grew 2.7% and their wealth rose by 4.8%, second only to North America.

Market performance, the report points out, drove much of this uplift as Taiwan’s TAIEX surged 28.9%, propelled by technology stocks, and Japan’s Nikkei 225 climbed 19.2% on the back of corporate governance reforms and a competitive yen.

India and Australia posted steady, broad-based gains; and China, despite facing ongoing policy pressures, managed a 2.4% increase in HNWI wealth. South Korea, however was an outlier, bucking the trend with an 8% equity market decline that triggered a 3.8% drop in the country’s HNWI wealth.

However, even as wealth accumulates across the region, a seismic shift is taking shape. Notably, US$83.5 trillion in global wealth, according to Capgemini projections, will be transferred from baby boomers to younger generations by 2048. Of that, more than US$11 trillion will be transferred within Asia-Pacific alone, a magnitude of capital that could totally reshape the industry’s client base and service expectations.

More digital, less loyal

The report delivers a blunt warning saying 81% of next-generation HNWIs ( aged 12 to 59 in 2025 ) say they intend to switch their primary wealth management provider within two years of receiving their inheritance.

Among the key drivers of dissatisfaction are poor digital interfaces, limited access to alternative investments and a lack of tailored, value-added services. So, for Asia’s private banks, asset managers and independent advisory firms, the report says, the threat is not a lack of assets, but the risk of business attrition.

Despite this urgency, only 29% of firms in Asia-Pacific currently offer bespoke services designed for this new generation. Compounding the problem, nearly half of relationship managers’ report dissatisfaction with the digital tools provided to them, diluting their ability to engage with digitally native, globally mobile clients.

The mismatch between legacy infrastructure and rising client expectations – old systems and modern investor priorities – the report notes, is putting increasing pressure on wealth managers.

Firms, the report urges, should act across three strategic dimensions – digital transformation, relationship management enhancement and product innovation.

Digital modernization must become foundational. Next-generation HNWIs demand omnichannel, real-time engagement, whether accessing a portfolio on their phone, speaking with an adviser via video or moving assets internationally. Seamless, technology-enabled interactions are no longer optional.

Global and deeply local

Equally vital is the evolution of the relationship manager role. Today’s clients, the report underscores, expect proactive, data-driven advice from advisers who understand their values as much as their balance sheets. Training in advanced analytics and embedding artificial intelligence into adviser workflows are highlighted as now being non-negotiable.

On the investment side, client interest is shifting toward private equity, digital assets, tokenized securities and ESG-aligned strategies. Firms that fail to adapt their product offering to include these preferences risk becoming irrelevant. Global diversification, once an institutional priority, is now a retail demand, with Singapore, Hong Kong, the UAE and New York emerging as top destinations for client assets.

The cultural diversity of Asia adds an extra layer of complexity. Wealth behaviours and expectations differ markedly between clients in Tokyo, Mumbai, Jakarta and Seoul. Firms need to build regional strategies that reflect these nuances, the report advises, not one-size-fits-all models imported from other jurisdictions.

The implications of the report are clear: while wealth in Asia is growing, client retention is under threat. To maintain assets under management and secure long-term growth, firms must reimagine their client engagement models now, before the largest generational handover in history becomes a missed opportunity.