The world's millionaires almost regained the losses suffered in 2008 with a 18.9% rise in wealth last year – while the super-rich saw their value shoot up even faster. However, the rebound has been driven by the Asia Pacific region.

According to the 14th annual World Wealth Report from Merrill Lynch Global Wealth Management and consultant Capgemini, high net worth individuals' wealth rose from $32.8 trillion (€ trillion) to $39 trillion in 2009. Ultra HNWIs - people with assets of $30m and above - saw their wealth rise even sharper, by a fifth, making up over a third of global HNWI wealth.