After years of false dawns, India’s wealth management industry in 2024 has all the vital ingredients for success: a China-beating 6.5% growth rate minting legions of new millionaires, a booming stock market, companies going global in a hurry, and a pro-business government about to win a fresh mandate from voters.

All this growth is fueling one of modern history’s greatest wealth-creation booms. India is slated to see an 85% increase in millionaires by 2034, creating a 22.5 trillion-rupee (US$270 billion) pool of investable wealth, according to Bloomberg data.

This has the oldest and biggest private banks racing to ramp up their India businesses. Bank Julius Baer, Bank of Singapore, J.P. Morgan, Standard Chartered, UBS and a who’s-who of top wealth managers are expanding offices, increasing services and vying for talent.

This influx is forcing India’s onshore private banking industry to raise its game quickly to defend market share.

The good news is that there might be plenty of new wealth being created to go around.

Decentralising wealth

“As Mumbai emerges as the billionaire capital of Asia and India adds 94 new billionaires in 2023, the wealth creation trend indicates an expanding market — so the pie is indeed getting bigger,” Yatin Shah, Co-founder and Joint CEO at 360 ONE Wealth, told Asian Private Banker.

Importantly, Shah explained, “There’s a decentralised pattern of wealth creation. Moreover, as India witnesses its first wealth transfer to the next generation, understanding the needs and aspirations of first-generation wealth creators becomes paramount.”

Shah’s team believes onshore wealth managers may have the advantage here, given their deep understanding of the idiosyncrasies inherent to India’s economic and political systems. Yet, there is also a risk that India’s nouveau-riche follow a trend found elsewhere in the developing world: as clients get richer, many opt for foreign institutions deemed more prestigious.

As the siren call of rapid Indian growth lures the biggest names in global private banking, complacency is not an option. It is incumbent on local players to constantly upgrade services and investment capabilities in savvy and creative ways. “Wealth management trends underscore the importance of not only staying ahead of the curve but also delivering tangible results,” said 360 ONE Wealth’s Shah. “It’s a journey where innovation, execution, and client-centricity converge to define the path to market leadership and sustained success.”