London has dropped to sixth in the list of cities with the most millionaires, with 11,300 dollar millionaires leaving the city over the past year, according to a report from Henley & Partners.

The company’s World’s Wealthiest Cities Report 2025 showed the UK’s capital fell out of the top five after being overtaken by Los Angeles, which had 220,600 millionaires compared to London’s 215,700.

The number of centi-millionaires in London fell by 18 to 352, while two billionaires left the city over the year to leave 33 remaining.

London and Moscow were the only two cities in the top 50 that recorded negative growth over the past 10 years, with their millionaire populations falling by 12 per cent and 25 per cent respectively.

The US continued to dominate the list, with 11 cities in the top 50, including New York in first place with 384,500 millionaires, and the Bay Area, which includes San Francisco and Silicon Valley, in second with 342,400.

The Bay Area has seen millionaire growth of 98 per cent over the past decade, only beaten by Shenzhen (28th place with 142 per cent millionaire growth), Hangzhou (35th place with 108 per cent growth), and Dubai (18th place with 102 per cent growth).

Tokyo had the third largest number of millionaires with 292,300, followed by Singapore in fourth place with 242,400.

Looking at centi-millionaires, Henley & Partners identified Dubai and Abu Dhabi as high growth centres, with both cities’ centi-millionaire population forecast to more than double over the next 10 years.

Similar centi-millionaire growth patterns were expected in Indian cities Delhi and Bengaluru, Europe’s Warsaw and Athens, and smaller cities providing targeted investment migration pathways, such as St. Julian’s and Sliema in Malta, and Lugano in Switzerland.

Henley & Partners CEO, Dr. Juerg Steffen, said there was a clear pattern of cities that blend investment freedom with lifestyle dividends “winning the competition” for mobile capital emerging in 2025.

“These urban centres share common DNA — robust legal frameworks, sophisticated financial infrastructure, and perhaps most critically, investment migration programs that welcome global talent and capital,” Steffen continued.

“Seven of the top 10 wealthiest cities are in countries with residence by investment programs, creating direct pathways for entrepreneurs and investors seeking access to these wealth hubs.”

Commenting on London dropping to sixth in the wealthiest cities list, AYU CEO and founder, Gus Morison, said: “We’ve been seeing AYU members leaving the UK first-hand throughout most of this year, at an average rate of approximately one per week.

“Some of our members have relocated to jurisdictions such as Dubai, Switzerland, Milan, Portugal, Miami, and Lisbon due to more favourable tax regimes and more supportive business environments, where they have greater confidence in the local government.

“Sadly, the Labour government has taken a far too punitive approach, and faith in the UK as a place to start and scale businesses is at an all-time low.”

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