Ultra High Net Worth Individuals - Crisil

The phenomenal growth in the number of the super rich has laid the foundation for an unprecedented expansion of the wealth management industry in India. Inevitably, it is also driving the entry and growth of luxury brands that cater exclusively to the tastes of the ultra high net worth individuals (UHNIs).

For both, wealth managers and luxury brand companies, one major hurdle to their effective functioning and growth is the almost remarkable dearth of information on the earning, spending and investing trends of the ultra wealthy.

In this report, the first of what will be an annual edition, we have laid the broad framework and detailed the methodology to define who an ultra HNI is. Considering the attention that they have been getting in recent times, it was also quite tempting to focus on what their numbers are and who has how much wealth.

Instead, the spotlight in this inaugural year is on behavioral aspects, such as what drives these individuals, what their priorities or motives are when it comes to spending or investing, and whether there is any homogeneity in their actions as a class.

The conclusions emerging from the analysis are informative and insightful, some even positively surprising. We believe that the takeaways gleaned from this report will be invaluable for people who manage the wealth of the ultra rich, and will help niche companies operating in the segment to come up with more innovative marketing or distribution strategies for their products.

Kotak and CRISIL seized the opportunity to create a report that analyses and tracks these trends year on year with specific reference to the Indian market. CRISIL Research then undertook an extensive analysis of the results of the survey, and every conclusion was subject to the same analytical rigour and review process that is the hallmark of all CRISIL Research reports.

This report is based on two main strands of research.

A series of interviews were conducted with senior personnel at major global luxury brands, art gallery owners, product dealers and industry body representatives.

We commissioned a market survey of 150+ ultra HNIs, with conversations lasting up to one hour. The respondents were spread across the three major metros, namely Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru, as well as Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Pune, and Kolkata (referred to as Other cities in this report). A majority of the respondents (77 per cent) were from the three major metros. The survey took place between December 2010 and February 2011.

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