People with enormous wealth must give it up, or be punished

In 2024, wealth concentration rises to an all-time high. according to Forbes list of billionairesNot only are there more billionaires than ever before – 2,781 people – but these billionaires are also richer than ever, with a combined wealth of $14.2 trillion. This trend appears to continue unabated. A Latest report Financial data firm Altrata estimates that about 1.2 million individuals worth more than $5 million will pass on a collective wealth of about $31 trillion over the next decade.

Discontent and concern about the consequences of extreme wealth in our society are growing. For example, Senator Bernie Sanders stated that “The obscene level of income and wealth inequality in America is a profound moral issue.“In A CNN joint editorial In 2023, Democratic Congresswoman Barbara Lee and Disney heiress Abigail Disney wrote that “extreme wealth inequality poses a threat to our economy and our democracy.” In 2024, when Tesla’s board of directors put it to a vote on a $56 billion pay package for Elon Musk, some major shareholders voted against it, declaring that compensation level “ridiculous” and “ridiculous.”silly“.

In 2025, combating growing wealth inequality will be at the top of the political agenda. In July 2024, the G20 – the world’s 20 largest economies – agreed to work on a proposal put forward by Brazil to introduce a new world order.Billionaire taxThis would impose a 2 percent tax on assets worth more than $1 billion. This would raise an estimated $250 billion annually. While this specific proposal was not endorsed in the Rio Declaration, the G20 countries Agreed That the wealthy should be taxed more heavily.

Progressive politicians won’t be the only ones trying to address this problem. In 2025, millionaires will increasingly mobilize and put pressure on political leaders. One of these movements is National millionairesa nonpartisan group of millionaires who are already publicly campaigning and privately lobbying the U.S. Congress for a guaranteed living wage for all, a fair tax system, and the protection of equal representation. “Millionaires and big corporations – who have benefited the most from our country’s assets – should foot a larger percentage of the bill for running the country“,” reads their value statement. Members include Abigail Disney, former BlackRock executive Maurice Perle, legal scholar Lawrence Lessig, screenwriter Norman Lear, and investor Lawrence Benenson.

Another example is TaxMeNowa lobby group founded in 2021 by young millionaires in Germany, Austria and Switzerland that also calls for higher wealth taxes. Its most famous member is 32-year-old Marlene Engelhorn, a descendant of Friedrich Engelhorn, founder of the German pharmaceutical giant BASF. She recently formed a council of 50 randomly selected Austrian citizens to decide what should happen to her €25 million inheritance. “I inherited a fortune, and therefore power, without doing anything for it,” she said in a statement. “If politicians don’t do their job and redistribute, I will have to redistribute my wealth myself.”

Earlier this year, Patriotic Millionaires, TaxMeNow, Oxfam, and other activist groups called for… Millionaires for humanity She formed a coalition called Proud to Pay More and Send a letter To world leaders during the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos. The letter, signed by hundreds of high-net-worth individuals — including heiress Valerie Rockefeller, actor Simon Pegg, and director Richard Curtis — reads: “We all know that the principle of ‘tiered economics’ has not been translated into reality. Instead, it has It gave us stagnant wages, crumbling infrastructure, failing public services, and the destabilization of the institution of democracy itself. “We ask you to take this necessary and inevitable step before… It’s too late. Make your countries proud. Tax extreme wealth. In 2025, thanks to the emerging movement of activist millionaires, these calls will get louder.