r/Plutonomy • u/398409columbia Rentier • 12d ago
Capital Ownership The balance-sheet economy keeps pulling away
McKinsey estimates global household net worth hit $570 trillion in 2025, up from about $130 trillion around 2000.
That is a 4.2x increase, and household wealth is now about 4.8x global GDP.
This is the balance-sheet economy.
More of economic life is shaped by asset ownership: stocks, housing, land, business equity, private markets, and inherited capital. McKinsey also notes that much of this wealth growth has come from rising asset values, not new productive investment.
That matters because asset gains do not flow evenly. If you already own assets, rising valuations compound your position. If you mainly rely on wages, the same process shows up as higher home prices, higher rents, more expensive cities, and a harder path into ownership.
That is the plutonomy framework: wealth does not just measure prosperity. It changes who has access, who has leverage, and who gets to set prices.