Iran’s wealthy meet in an uptown coffee shop in Tehran.
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The number of millionaires in Iran has exploded despite the country suffering under U.S. sanctions and the Covid-19 pandemic.
In 2020, the number of high net worth individuals (HNWIs) in Iran grew by 21.6%, way above the global average of 6.3%. The collective wealth of these dollar millionaires grew even faster at 24.3%.
“Between March and July the Tehran Stock Exchange’s trade values increased by 625% compared with the same period a year earlier,” says a report from Capgemini, a consultancy, released on Tuesday (29 June). By comparison the S&P 500 gained just over 16% during the same period.
With access to international assets curtailed by sanctions, many of Iran’s wealthy and professional classes put their money into stocks and shares. The resulting bull market has made millionaires out of them. There are now 250,000 millionaires in Iran, according to Capgemini. Most of them…