1. Wealth Through The Prism
Of Culture And Mobility
An Economist Intelligence Unit report on behalf of RBC Wealth Management
There’s Wealth in Our Approach.TM

2. Contents
Foreword
M. George Lewis, Group Head, RBC Wealth Management & Insurance 2
Introduction 3
Who took the survey: Defining IMWIs 3
Sources of wealth 4
Seeking opportunities abroad: Why IMWIs left home 4
Where IMWIs earn income 5
Investment approach 5
Intergenerational wealth transfer 6
Philanthropy and charitable giving 7
Visions of retirement 8
Conclusion 8
Focus: Asia-Pacific 9
Focus: North America 10
Focus: Western Europe 10

3. Foreword
As globalized economies converge, high net worth individuals have increasingly
international footprints, often with personal and professional interests in multiple
geographies. As one’s wealth increases, so too do the complexities involved in
protecting and ultimately transferring wealth to future generations, particularly
when multiple jurisdictions are involved.
At RBC Wealth Management, our experience working with high net worth and ultra high net worth clients
around the world affirms that their success is often influenced by a uniquely global approach to managing
wealth and meeting personal and professional goals. We strive to provide our global clients with excellence
in advice and solutions to help give them the freedom, confidence and control to realize their aspirations,
whatever they may be.
We commissioned the Economist Intelligence Unit to undertake research to further explore the influence
of culture and global mobility on the perspectives and behaviours of high net worth individuals around
the world, as they relate to issues such as asset allocation, investment objectives, intergenerational wealth
transfer, charitable giving and retirement planning.
The result is the following report based on research and interviews with key subject matter experts,
conducted by the EIU.
We would like to thank JRM (Marc) Babineau, Ricardo Barcelona and Alexander Luedi who are quoted
in this report, for their valuable time and insights.
I hope you find the report to be an interesting read.
M. George Lewis
Group Head, RBC Wealth Management & Insurance
WEALTH THROUGH THE PRISM OF CULTURE AND MOBILITY 2

4. A young professional moved from Canada to begin his career
in Mexico and Chile, after which he moved to the US and
eventually settled in Belgium. Why? As globalized economies
continue to converge, a cadre of international high net worth
individuals is increasingly discovering opportunities to export
their expertise and professional know-how to markets both far
and wide.
A new study conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU)
on behalf of RBC Wealth Management explores this trend in
greater detail. In particular, it investigates how this unique
segment of internationally-mobile wealthy individuals (IMWIs)
views issues such as asset allocation, investment objectives,
intergenerational wealth transfer, charitable giving and retirement
planning – all through the prism of culture and mobility.
The EIU recently surveyed 300 internationally mobile wealthy
individuals (IMWIs) who live, work or spend more than half
their time outside their home country and have investable
assets of at least US$1million. Among other themes, the EIU
observed the following:
The vast majority of IMWIs are self-made, most frequently
citing income from work as a professional, an entrepreneur
or an executive of a publicly traded organization as the
principal source of their wealth.
The majority of IMWIs left their home countries in pursuit
of a higher quality of life or for family reasons, rather than
for purely business interests.
IMWIs attribute some of their success to mobility itself
– with nearly all saying that a global lifestyle has broadened
their horizons and created significant wealth and other
opportunities for them.
IMWIs take a global view to investing, with income tending
to come from the countries where they live or from a third
country, rather than from their country of birth.
IMWIs expect a strong work ethic among the next generation
with most planning to leave enough assets to their family so
they are comfortable but still have to work for a living.
In spite of their mobility, many IMWIs maintain strong
links to their homelands, especially when it comes to estate
planning, philanthropy and retirement.
Notwithstanding these overall trends, IMWIs are far from a
monolithic group. They can be as varied as the countries and
cultures from which they hail.The EIU delves into these variations
in greater depth by examining similarities and differences among
IMWIs by both country of origin and country of primary residence.
Who took the survey?
In June 2012, the EIU conducted an online survey of
558 high-net-worth individuals, using a stratified sample
that included 300 respondents who say they live or work
outside their country of birth or spend more than half of
their time outside their home country. Survey findings
from the latter group of IMWIs forms the basis for most
of this report, while the 258 non-mobile respondents
provide benchmarks for comparison. The EIU also
conducted in-depth interviews with five survey
respondents between September and October 2012.
Of the 300 IMWIs, nearly three-quarters (74%) say they
have accumulated investable assets of between $1m and
$5m, while 14% have between $6m and $10m and 12%
have more than $11m. The vast majority (83%) are male,
and more than half are between the ages of 30 and 50,
with 24% older than 60. Only 3% are aged 30 or younger.
The graph below outlines the geographic disbursement
of IMWIs both by country of birth and residence. North
America stands out as the only region that sees a greater
proportion of IMWIs living there compared to the number
of IMWIs born there. A deeper look at the results found
the UK, Canada, Singapore, and the US to be the countries
with the largest numbers of IMWIs as residents, with
each of them as the current home to more than 10% of
surveyed IMWIs.
3 RBC WEALTH MANAGEMENT
Introduction
Region of Principal Residence and Birth
% of IMWI respondents
38%
30%
25%
40%
37%
12%
5%
7%
1%
3%
1%
1%
Asia-Pacific
Western Europe
North America
Middle East & Africa
Latin America
Eastern Europe
Principal residence
Birth

5. I did it my way
How IMWIs amassed their wealth
In today’s environment where misperceptions and
generalizations of the wealthy abound, the EIU found that the
majority of IMWIs have actually accumulated their wealth the
old fashioned way – they earned it. In fact, of the 300 IMWIs
surveyed, only 4% indicate that they inherited most of it.
(See Figure 1).
Figure 1: Percentage of IMWI respondents indicating sources of the majority of their wealth.
These trends reinforce some expectations yet also signal
emerging trends. The earnings potential of physicians and
other professionals throughout the world is clearly an important
source of investable assets. At the same time, as companies
across the globe cut costs in order to remain successful in a
slower-growth environment, there may be fewer opportunities
to earn large disposable incomes as an executive. “When I
started out, we were the typicalWestern expats,”says Alexander
Luedi, a Swiss senior executive now building his own business
in Hong Kong. “The old-style expat arrangement gave you tax
breaks, housing and a lot of other perks, so these executives
were drawing large cash payouts that they needed to invest.”
These benefits are no longer as widely available as they once
were, and today typical expats are young executives, travelling
without families. “You also have a new class of expats that
come from other parts of Asia,” says Mr Luedi.
The EIU’s survey data also points to a considerable degree of
pulling oneself up by the bootstraps, with the vast majority of
respondents (70%) born to parents who would not have been
considered high net worth individuals. On the other hand,
IMWIs are more likely than their home-based wealthy
counterparts to have come from high net worth families
(30% versus 20%), suggesting a correlation between relative
affluence and mobility.
Access to an advanced education is the most obvious link
between a wealthy family and subsequent business or
professional success. “When people come from relatively
wealthy families – not necessarily high net worth, but wealthier
than average in their home country – they tend to have better
opportunities,” says a senior-level executive in the financial
services industry in New York. She adds that they tend to have
opportunities to go to the top business schools in Europe, the
US and, increasingly, Asia. “That opens that connection to the
rest of the world; they make friends, they learn about different
cultures, and they discover opportunities.”
Interestingly, the younger (aged 40 and under) segment of
IMWIs report a more diverse range of income sources such as
entrepreneurship and real estate investment, compared to the
professional or executive experience that generated wealth for
older IMWI cohorts. Indeed, the proportion that accumulated
their wealth as professionals drops from 41% of those over 50,
to 26% of the 41-to-50 group and only 17% for those 40 and
under. IMWIs who were interviewed suggest that this trend
partly reflects increased mobility, which tends to expose more
young people to less-traditional business opportunities.
I vow to thee, my country
Seeking opportunities abroad; but staying
connected to country of birth
The overwhelming majority of IMWIs first ventured abroad in
pursuit of a higher quality of life or for family reasons. Factors
that affect both personal and business life including political
stability and infrastructure rank next, with purely business
considerations coming in fifth place. (See Figure 2).
Figure 2: Percentage of IMWIs citing “moderately” or “very” important reasons for choosing
their country of residence.
WEALTH THROUGH THE PRISM OF CULTURE AND MOBILITY 4
29%
17%
12%
9%
12%
8%
6%
4%
3%
Sources of IMWI Wealth
% of IMWIs indicating the source of the majority of their wealth
Professional (doctor, lawyer, etc.)
Entrepreneurship
Executive of publicy held company
Real estate investments/land development
Private equity
Selling a business
Principal of a private/family business
Inheritance
Other
Quality of life
Family
Political stability
Infrastructure
Business interests
Educational opportunities
Language
Regulatory environment
Access to capital markets
Low tax environment
Immigration policies
Weather
Time zone
Why IMWIs Move Abroad
% very or moderately important
79%
88%
73%
67%
64%
59%
59%
52%
49%
48%
46%
26%
72%

6. In interviews, several IMWIs talked about growing up in
environments conducive to mobility, such as having parents
engaged in international business. “My father was involved in
international investment promotion and this brought me in
contact with a lot of interesting people, and that built a certain
curiosity,” says JRM (Marc) Babineau, a Canadian entrepreneur
now working in Belgium. “So at the age of 24, when an
opportunity in Mexico came up, I jumped at it. I worked there
for three years; then moved on to Chile, then to the US, then
back to Mexico and now I’m in Belgium.”
Some IMWIs initially built careers in their home country with
organizations that subsequently transferred them abroad.
That’s how Ricardo Barcelona, Managing Director of an energy
company in Spain, left his home in the Philippines: “At that
time, if you were building a career in investment banking, that
would eventually take you to one of three centres – New York,
London or Tokyo,” he says. For others, a sense of adventure
gave them the initial push to move out of their home country,
and they soon settled into a mobile lifestyle. “I came from a
middle class family,” says Mr Luedi. “I was chasing a dream
and seeking adventure rather than a big salary when I decided
to leave Switzerland and look for a job abroad. That mobility
was strengthened by my career (as an executive) as companies
moved me around. I moved 11 times in the first 20 years of my
professional life.”
While the location of IMWIs’ primary residence has an impact
on their perceptions and behaviors, the differences among
regions are even greater through a birth-country lens. One
reason is that their mobility tends to be primarily within regions
rather than between regions. For example, 63% of IMWIs born
in the Asia-Pacific region currently live in Singapore, Hong Kong,
China or India, compared with 12% who live in the US or
Canada. The patterns are similar in the other regions. The
EIU explores these trends in greater detail through the profiles
of IMWIs in Asia-Pacific, North America and Western Europe
(see pages 9 & 10).
IMWIs and their money
Where IMWIs earn their income
Of course, in most cases, when IMWIs leave their home
country, they look to establish new sources of income, with
most generating the majority of their income within their
country of primary residence. That said, over a fifth (23%)
derive most of their income from their country of origin and
a small proportion (9%) derive it from a third country.
The EIU did observe large regional differences, however. An
overwhelming 94% of IMWIs now living in the US derive most
of their income from their country of residence, as do 80% of
IMWIs in Canada. This contrasts with 63% of Western
Europe-based IMWIs and 58% of those living in Asia-Pacific.
The fact that North America-based IMWI income is more
closely tied to their country of residence reflects the breadth of
income sources available to them in North America, and the
fact that they are geographically more isolated than IMWIs
from other regions. For example, IMWIs in Western Europe
can more easily move among multiple countries. This is
further reflected in patterns of home ownership: two-thirds
(66%) of IMWIs in Western Europe have two or more personal
residences, compared with only about half (52%) of those in
North America. Moreover, they are more than twice as likely
(78% vs. 37%) as North America-based IMWIs to have lived in
three or more countries for at least six months.
In interviews, IMWIs attributed some of their success to mobility
itself – with nearly all of them saying that a global lifestyle has
broadened their horizons and created significant wealth and
other opportunities for them. As Mr Babineau puts it, after
living in different countries, “you start seeing things differently;
and if you immerse yourself in the local culture, you…. see
opportunities.” He adds that building local networks can help
in identifying investments that might have otherwise been
overlooked. Mr Barcelona agrees that immersing oneself in the
local culture is key to translating mobility into good investment
opportunities. “Lots of people travel but remain detached
from the places they’ve visited,” he says. “Unless you integrate
yourself into the local culture, and truly understand what the
society is all about, there is likely to be very little opportunity.”
Searching for returns
Investment approach among IMWIs
Looking more closely at where IMWIs invest, they demonstrate
a global view with regards to investment opportunities with
20% investing most of their assets in countries outside of their
origin or residence, compared to only 9% of their peers who
stayed at home. European IMWIs show a greater propensity to
invest most of their assets outside their country of residence
or origin (37%), as compared to their Asia-Pacific (10%) or
North American (11%) mobile peers.
Almost half (48%) of IMWIs invest the majority of their assets in
their country of residence and about one-third (32%) in their
country of origin. There is a notable trend amongst IMWIs
originating from India, with 62% continuing to remain loyal
to their country of birth when deciding where to invest, likely
related to the trend of India-born IMWIs continuing to hold
a residence in their home-country.
5 RBC WEALTH MANAGEMENT

7. In terms of investment objectives, most IMWIs cite steady growth
(55%) or asset preservation (22%) as their primary investment
goal. Only 14% seek mainly high-growth investments, while
the rest are interested in either income/cash flow or liquidity.
Mark Twain famously wrote, “Buy land, they’re not making it
anymore” – advice which continues to resonate with IMWIs
today. Real estate leads the list in terms of preferred asset classes
among IMWIs, with domestic equities and cash following
closely behind. (See Figure 3).
A focus on property is particularly true for those living in
Asia-Pacific, where 68% say that the representation of real estate
in their investment portfolio is very high or high. A US-based
executive says this tendency also applies to Africa-based IMWIs
for one simple reason: “Real estate is tangible. HNWIs are
familiar with capital markets but to them that’s still virtual.
So they invest in real estate both in their own countries and
abroad, typically in the places where they were educated or
where they have lived.”
Demonstrating the correlation of their global experience and
their investment approach, global equities are favoured by
36% of IMWIs compared to only 25% of their less mobile
peers. Correspondingly, home-based wealthy invest heavily
in their local market, favoured by two thirds (66%), compared
to less than half (46%) of IMWIs.
Meanwhile, asset classes such as private equity and venture
capital make up a much smaller proportion of IMWI
investment portfolios.
Figure 3: Percent of IMWIs stating high or very high representation of asset classes in their
investment portfolios.
In interviews, IMWIs highlighted the impact of their mobility
on their approach to managing risk. “Whether you see yourself
as risk averse or more of a risk taker is really a function of
your capacity to understand the risks that you’re taking,”
says Mr Barcelona. He continues that mobility can change this
perception because it improves an individual’s appreciation of
how to deal with change and uncertainty: “People who learn
to live with uncertainty can make informed economic decisions
and this investment intelligence is more important than risk
appetite per se.”
Of course, family needs have a big influence on investment
strategies and, in some cases, this can trump the more general
trend towards conservative investment strategies. “I married late
in life, and today I have three small children in private school
while some of my contemporaries are ready for retirement,” says
Mr Luedi, “so I need to keep a focus on growth and liquidity,
rather than stable, conservative investments.” A senior business
leader whose banking career has taken him away from his
native India also stresses the influence of family: “Given the
stage of life I’m in, I have fairly narrow objectives, first for
income growth and second, to provide for my children’s
education, which is not getting any cheaper.”
One senior executive points out that the risk appetites of
self-made IMWIs tend to diminish as they become more
successful.When they’ve accumulated wealth, they become
more conservative in their investments. “At some point,” she
adds, “they start separating their personal assets from the
business assets and they begin trying to preserve that personal
wealth for future generations.”
Their mobile lifestyle also tends to make IMWIs likely to invest in
multiple currencies, with nearly half (48%) holding investments
in three or more currencies and another 38% indicating they
use two. In fact, for some IMWIs, investment strategy is all
about currency. “I tend to focus more on currency blocs than
geographic blocs,” says Mr Barcelona. “I invest to generate
earnings for either future investment or spending, and I want
those earnings to be in particular currencies.” He favours
investments in the euro, sterling and US dollar blocs. “Whether
one would get more emphasis than the other,” he says, “is a
question of the short-term and the medium-term outlook for
the currency.”
You can’t take it with you
Intergenerational wealth transfer among IMWIs
Whereas many other IMWI characteristics are influenced by
country of principal residence, their country of birth appears to
have a stronger impact on estate planning.Those from developed
markets are most likely to divide their estate between family
and charitable causes, while those from developing-country
backgrounds are more likely to leave their entire estates to
family members.
WEALTH THROUGH THE PRISM OF CULTURE AND MOBILITY 6
Real Estate
Domestic equities
Global equities
Cash
Mutual or pooled funds
Private equity funds
Precious metals
Venture capital
Corporate bonds
Government (sovereign) bonds
Municipal bonds
Hedge funds
Art and collectibles
IMWI Asset Class Preferences
% high or very high portfolio representation
53%
46%
36%
36%
31%
22%
21%
20%
20%
17%
15%
13%
13%

8. The EIU finds that IMWIs born in the Asia-Pacific region have
stronger connections with their homelands, with over a third
(41%) planning to leave all of their wealth to their family,
compared with Europe-based (24%) and North America-based
(14%) IMWIs. An India-born IMWI interviewed for this report
said, “Right now, my goals are entirely about my family.” His
career has taken him to Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore and
most recently Vietnam, but he is clear that “from an emotional
perspective, India is still home and that’s not going away.”
Overall, fewer than one-third (32%) of all IMWIs plan to leave
all of their wealth to their families. (See Figure 4). The most
frequent approach, preferred by 33% of all IMWIs, is to leave
enough assets to their family so they are comfortable but still
have to work for a living, an approach that is likely related to
a shared strong work ethic among these primarily self-made
IMWIs. Only 10% plan to leave enough assets to their family
so they don’t have to work.
Surprisingly, the wealth level of IMWIs does not strongly affect
the proportions who say they will leave all or a substantial
portion of their wealth to their families.
Despite these varied wealth transfer goals, one area of consistency
appears to be a lack of formal estate planning, with over one third
(37%) of IMWIs without a will in place, while only 36% have a
trust and 9% have a foundation. North American-born IMWIs
are the most likely to have written a will (83%) while UK-born
IMWIs are the most likely to leverage a trust to meet their
estate planning goals, with almost half (47%) doing so. Over a
third (34%) of respondents – and over half (57%) of those in the
US – admit to not fully understanding that tax regimes that
their assets are subject to, a factor that may have a significant
effect on what their families and charitable
causes will inherit.
Figure 4: Percent of IMWIs stating their approaches to estate planning
Helping others
Philanthropy and charitable giving
The majority (68%) of IMWIs give 5% or less of their gross income
to charity. Roughly one-quarter (26%) give between 6% and
10% and only 6% donate more. In contrast with estate planning,
where birth country has the most impact, philanthropy tends
to be most influenced by IMWIs’ country of principal residence,
likely in part because that determines both the level of tax
deductions and government social spending. Those living in
North America are most likely to donate larger amounts (more
than 10% of gross income), with those in Asia-Pacific leading
donations in the 6%-10% range. Europeans appear to donate
the least on a percentage basis to charity, with three quarters
saying they donate between 0%-5%. Looking at the charitable
causes favoured by IMWIs, the most common include children‘s
charities (27% of IMWIs favoured children’s causes compared
to 16% of their home-based wealth peers), followed by health,
education and poverty reduction (see Figure 5).
Figure 5: Percent of total charitable giving allocated to certain charities
Beyond the overall figure donated to charity, the EIU observed
interesting trends among IMWIs in terms of whether they
prefer to support charities in their country of residence, their
birth country or other countries. Those who donate mainly in
their countries of primary residence (50%) outnumber those
who give in their birth countries (34%), while those favouring
third countries number 16%. Respondents in North America
are far more likely to give where they live, with 76% of IMWIs
there giving to local causes, whereas those in Asia-Pacific are
more focused on their birth countries, with 48% giving to
causes back at home, 38% to causes where they reside and
13% to causes in other countries.
7 RBC WEALTH MANAGEMENT
IMWI Approaches to Estate Planning
% of all IMWIs
Leave enough to my family to be comfortable
but still have to work for a living
Leave all of my wealth to my family
I don’t yet have any estate planning goals
Leave a significant amount to charity but the
majority of my estate to my family
Leave enough assets to my family
so that they don’t have to work
Give the majority of my estate to
philanthropies/non-political charities
33%
32%
13%
10%
4%
10%
27%
13%
12%
11%
5%
9%
9%
4%
4%
2%
2%
2%
Charities Preferred by IMWIs
% of total charitable giving
Children’s charities
Health
Education
Poverty reduction
Religious causes
Social services
The Environment
Other
Women’s issues
The arts
Peace/justice
Political interests

9. Conclusion
While the road to success takes many twists and turns, there are signposts that have guided today’s IMWIs on their journey.
Seizing opportunity, embracing change, building connections, understanding risk – these are all themes with which IMWIs are
intimately aware. These are also themes that have informed their approach to their professions, realising investment returns,
planning for retirement, providing for successive generations, and embracing charitable causes. Is there a direct link between
wealth and mobility? As Yale professor Edward Tufte once quipped, “Correlation is not causation but it sure is a hint.”
And there’s no denying that a global lifestyle has broadened their perspectives, expanded their personal and professional networks,
and left an indelible mark on their perspectives towards wealth. As Mr Babineau puts it: “When you start in a new country, it is
very important to quickly adapt, including learning the language and understanding the culture. And then you start networking
and meeting interesting people and that’s where opportunities just start growing. It’s not for everybody – and it’s not always easy
– but those who fit the profile generally tend to be successful.”
Many IMWIs take a global view of philanthropy: “For me, big
international charities are in the foreground,” says Mr Luedi.
“I combine (my giving to) groups like the Red Cross, World
Wildlife Fund, and Médecins Sans Frontières with local causes,”
he says, “but as local charities tend to be very specialized and
I don’t have a lot of time to try to follow their activities, I stick
to those where I understand what they’re doing.”
Winding down
Visions of “retirement”
Throughout the world, life expectancy is on the rise. For
example, the EIU estimates that while the average French man
would expect to live for a little over 10 years after retirement
in 1970, he can now expect to enjoy 23 years in retirement.
With more years to play with, IMWIs who were interviewed
said they don’t expect to retire in the conventional sense. Of
course, those who are employed will eventually leave their jobs,
but they expressed a strong desire to stay active in some
combination of business, charitable or family activity.
“Given that I still need an income way past any retirement age,
I’m trying to build up a company that I own,” says Mr Luedi.
“In the future I hope to be able to work part time and spend
the rest taking care of my family.”
Returning to their home country for at least part of the year to
be near family is another common expectation. “We’ll have one
primary residence in India, almost by default,” says a senior
business leader who was born there, “because as we grow older,
the family support will become more important than it is today.
Singapore has been an important home to us as a family so
that seems like home too. These are the two possibilities we’re
looking at.”
Interviews revealed further insights into patterns of IMWIs
from developing countries where social security benefits such
as retirement are not always provided, which leads to a focus
on working into typical retirement years to provide long-term
security for their families. As well, it was noted that even highly-
mobile individuals who have been exposed to retirement
planning and pension contributions overseas don’t see formal
retirement as a priority due to an interest in continuing to
develop exist ing business interests in their “retirement” years.
WEALTH THROUGH THE PRISM OF CULTURE AND MOBILITY 8

10. ASIA-PACIFIC: YOUNG AND ADVENTUROUS
In the near future, the Asia-Pacific region – home to the world’s
most diverse culture, economic systems and living standards,
as well as the largest number of high net worth individuals2
–
is expected to eclipse OECD economies in terms of GDP. This
trend bodes well for Asia-Pacific IMWIs, whose sources of
wealth tend to be diversified and skewed towards real estate
and sales of businesses as opposed to income from occupations
as professionals or executives. They tend to live in places where
opportunities abound: more than half of surveyed Asia-Pacific-
based IMWIs are found in Singapore (31%) or Hong Kong (24%)
both of which rank in the top five global cities on the EIU’s
City Competitiveness index (along with New York, London and
Paris). Opportunities for entrepreneurs are further enhanced
by the region’s very high savings and investment rates.
The EIU survey found that an overwhelming majority (81%) of
IMWIs whose principal residence is in the Asia-Pacific region
were also born there. As a group, IMWIs born in Asia-Pacific
tend to be younger and less wealthy than their counterparts
from North America and Western Europe. Close to half (46%)
fall into the 40-and-under age group. This partially explains
why they have yet to accumulate as much wealth as IMWIs
born in Western Europe and North America, of which only
15% and 17% respectively are that young. Only about one in
five (21%) have investable assets of more than $5m, and only
8% have more than $10m, compared with 13% in Western
Europe and 14% in North America.
About 36% say they come from high net worth families, much
more than the 23% seen in the other two regions. This might
reflect the fact that access to an advanced education was tradi-
tionally a bigger economic barrier in Asia-Pacific than in the
other regions. This hasn’t stopped the region’s major business
centers from achieving high educational standards today,
however. Hong Kong, Singapore, Shanghai and South Korea
lead the OECD’s world education rankings, conferring yet
another advantage on businesses in the region.
While they are similar to their peers born in other regions in
their tendency to derive income from their country of resi-
dence, they are far more likely (35% vs. 13% in Western
Europe) to derive income from their birth country and they
are unlikely to point to third countries. A propensity to invest
very heavily in real estate is apparent among Asia-Pacific born
IMWIs, with 27% doing so compared with 3% of IMWIs born
in North America and 14% from Western Europe. They are
less likely than North Americans but more likely than Western
2
World Wealth Report 2012 from Capgemini and RBC Wealth Management.
9 RBC WEALTH MANAGEMENT
Source of IMWI Wealth
% of respondents born in each region
Executive Selling
A business
Real Estate Professional
Asia-Pacific
North America
Western Europe
9%
11%
16% 16%
22%
13%
3%
5%
11%
7%
34%
39%
Source of IMWI Income
% of respondents born in each region
Asia-Pacific
North America
Western Europe
60%
63%
57%
35%
3%
26%
9%
13% 13%
Country of
primary residence
Country of
birth
Third Country
IMWI Age Groups
% of respondents born in each region
Asia-Pacific
North America
Western Europe
46%
17% 15%
54%
83% 85%
Age 40 and under Age 41+

11. Europeans to invest in domestic equities (issued in their
country of residence). Finally, they differ sharply from other
IMWIs in their estate planning and charitable plans. They
are much more inclined to leave their entire estate to their
families, and while they tend to give less percentage-wise to
charity, their donations are more than twice as likely to go to
causes in their home countries.
NORTH AMERICA: ESTABLISHED AND AGING
For at least a century, North America was the principal
“land of opportunity” for self-made people. Stories abound
of immigrants landing virtually penniless on Ellis Island and
then building huge fortunes. This history has left the region’s
wealthy with particularly good access to capital markets.
More recently, Canada, with three of the five top-ranked cities
on the EIU’s livability survey, has become a destination for
many established IMWIs from around the world. And while
opportunities have shifted in recent years, North America
remains an attractive place to live and work, a key point
considering that lifestyle benefits top the list of reasons
why IMWIs leave their home countries.
According to the World Wealth Report 2012 from Capgemini
and RBCWealth Management, the North American population
of high net worth individuals declined by about 1% in 2011
compared with a 1.6% gain in Asia-Pacific. But North America
is still home to 3.3m high net worth individuals, more than
30% of the global total and the region boasts an even larger
share of accumulated wealth. This reflects the historical
long-term movement of IMWIs into North America. Only
31% of IMWIs who currently live in North America were born
in the region, a stark contrast with 81% in Asia-Pacific, and
65% in Western Europe.
Level of mobility stands out as the biggest difference between
IMWIs born in North America and Western Europe. Only 40%
of the former have lived in three or more countries for at least
six months, compared with 68% of Western Europeans. As a
result, IMWIs born in North America are much more likely
than Western Europeans to say they derive most of their
income from their country of origin. This reflects a stronger
tendency to invest in domestic equities (from their country
of residence), which 27% say are strongly represented in their
investment portfolios, compared with 10% in Western Europe.
North American-born IMWIs differ sharply from those in
other regions in their approaches to estate planning and
charitable plans. They are much less inclined to leave their
entire estates to their families, and much more likely to make
significant bequests to charities, with 29% planning to donate
significant amounts of their estate compared to just 11% of
IMWIs from other markets. They also stand out in their choice
of charities, with two-thirds saying they make the majority of
their donations in their countries of residence, compared with
47% in Western Europe and 45% in Asia Pacific.
WESTERN EUROPE: INTERNATIONAL COMMUTERS
Western Europe is distinguished by the high level of integration
among member countries of the European Union, and even
more so within the Eurozone. A declining population is offset
to some extent by the high level of cross-border mobility that
citizens enjoy, as well as the relatively small distances among
countries. On the other hand, IMWIs living in the region share
a concern about the very future of the Eurozone and may be
motivated to diversify some investments away from the region.
This high level of personal mobility is reflected in the lifestyles
and investment strategies of the IMWIs who were born there.
More than two-thirds (68%) have lived in three or more countries
for at least six months, compared with about 40% of those
born in the other two regions. When it comes to reasons for
selecting their country of residence, tax regimes were a greater
attraction for them than North Americans, but quality of life is
still the biggest motivator.
IMWIs born in Western Europe fall in between Asia Pacific
and North America in terms of age, with only 15% age 40
or younger, and 57% over the age of 50. About 13% have
accumulated investable assets of more than $10m, which is
very close to the North American level. About 23% come from
high net worth families, the same as North America but much
lower than the 36% seen in Asia-Pacific.
IMWIs born in Western Europe are most likely to list income
from occupations as professionals or executives as their primary
source of wealth. This wealth is more likely to come from their
country of residence or a third country rather than their birth
country. IMWIs from Western Europe also say that real estate
is strongly represented in their investment portfolios more
often than those from North America, but they invest less in
this area than those from Asia Pacific.
Finally, when it comes to inheritance and philanthropy,
Western European-born IMWIs are less likely than average to
plan to leave their entire estates to their families, and also less
likely to make significant bequests to charities. When they do
donate to charity, they are more likely than North Americans
but less likely than those from Asia-Pacific to direct it to
causes in their country of birth.
WEALTH THROUGH THE PRISM OF CULTURE AND MOBILITY 10

12. AN ECONOMIST INTELLIGENCE UNIT REPORT 9
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