Cyprus Tops Europe in Rising Wealth Inequality, Report Finds
The richest 1% in Cyprus more than doubled their share of national wealth since 2000, marking the sharpest rise in Europe.
Wealth inequality is deepening across the globe, and Cyprus has emerged as one of the European countries where the rich have pulled furthest ahead in the past two decades, according to a new analysis by BestBrokers.
The report, based on data from the World Inequality Database covering 217 countries between 2000 and 2023, shows that Cyprus recorded one of the steepest rises in wealth concentration in Europe. The richest 10% of the population increased their share of national wealth by 16 percentage points, from 50.7% in 2000 to 66.7% last year.
Even more striking is the surge among the ultra-rich. The wealthiest 1% in Cyprus saw their portion of national wealth more than double over the same period, jumping from 12.8% to 33.3%—the sharpest rise not only in Europe but globally.
Analysts point to Cyprus’s unique economic trajectory as a key factor behind this widening gap. The now-defunct “Golden Passport” scheme, which ran between 2007 and 2020, drew in wealthy foreign investors, fuelling a property boom that drove housing prices far beyond the reach of ordinary Cypriots. At the same time, finance and offshore services became increasingly central to the island’s economy.
The fallout from the 2013 banking crisis also exacerbated inequality. While a €10 billion international bailout helped stabilize the financial system, years of wage stagnation, austerity, and underemployment left many households struggling, even as wealthy investors and businesses regained ground.
The findings place Cyprus alongside global hotspots of inequality. In South Africa, the world’s most unequal economy, the richest 10% control nearly 86% of the nation’s wealth. China, meanwhile, saw the fastest rise in concentration, with its top 10% expanding their share from 48.3% in 2000 to 68% in 2023.
Compared to other advanced economies, Cyprus now looks closer to Latin American levels of disparity. In the United States, for example, the richest 10% hold 71.2% of the country’s wealth—well above European benchmarks such as the UK (57.1%) or Denmark (around 50%).
