India’s wealth is spreading beyond its traditional metros, creating a broader market for private wealth managers.
While Delhi-NCR, Mumbai and Bengaluru remain the biggest wealth hubs, cities such as Hyderabad, Pune, Kolkata, Kochi and Chennai, along with smaller centres including Lucknow, Kanpur, Nagpur, Nashik and Kolhapur, are seeing the biggest addition of millionaires and high-net-worth individuals (HNIs), said Ashish Shanker, managing director and chief executive officer of Motilal Oswal Private Wealth.
Motilal Oswal Private Wealth, which has grown its assets under management from about ₹20,000 crore at the start of the decade to over ₹2.39 trillion as of end of June quarter (Q1FY27), aims to become a leader in the private wealth market within five to six years, Shanker said.
“Affluent investors typically rely on mutual funds, hybrid funds and debt products, while HNIs and family offices increasingly diversify into global assets, private equity, structured credit, pre-IPO opportunities, AIFs and bespoke PMS strategies.”
As global diversification gains traction, are HNIs and ultra-high-net-worth individuals (UHNIs) still constructive on India, or are premium valuations and slower near-term growth pushing them towards global markets? Shanker believes it is a bit of both.
Edited excerpts:
Are HNIs and UHNIs looking to increase their global exposure?
Yes, we're seeing growing interest from both HNIs and UHNIs in increasing their global exposure. As clients' wealth grows, we also recommend allocating a portion of their portfolios to global investments.
The rationale is simple: our lives are increasingly global. Many expenses, from international travel and overseas education to the products we consume, are linked to the US dollar. Having global investments helps align portfolios with these financial realities.
Over the past two years, we've strengthened our investment capabilities across asset classes, hired senior bankers to better serve large family offices, and expanded our HNI presence across cities to deliver more tailored solutions at scale.
Are there specific cities where you are seeing stronger growth in the number of HNIs?
If you look at wealth creation city-wise, Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, and Bengaluru remain the clear leaders. These markets continue to see the strongest wealth creation and will likely retain their scale.
Beyond them, Hyderabad and Pune are emerging rapidly, while Kolkata is showing renewed optimism. In Gujarat, cities such as Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodara and Rajkot are creating distinct pockets of wealth. Kochi, with its strong base of non-resident Indians (NRIs), and Chennai, driven by technology and services, are also seeing healthy growth. Lucknow, Kanpur, Nagpur, Nashik and Kolhapur, are witnessing isolated but meaningful wealth creation.
The real momentum, however, is still concentrated in the top seven or eight cities. That's where we're seeing the broadest addition of millionaires and HNIs. Smaller cities may produce a handful of billionaire promoters, but they don't yet have the same depth of wealth. Goa, for instance, has several ultra-wealthy families, but it lacks the breadth of affluent investors seen in larger metropolitan markets.
A common thread across the fastest-growing wealth hubs is the services economy. Cities with thriving technology, financial services and consumer services sectors are creating the largest number of millionaires. Business-led cities such as Rajkot are also producing successful entrepreneurs who are increasingly looking to monetize their businesses through private equity or initial public offerings (IPOs).
With capital markets becoming the preferred monetization route, more promoters are choosing to raise private capital before eventually going public.
There is a perception that HNIs remain bullish on India. Are they increasing their India exposure, or looking more aggressively at global opportunities?
It depends on where an investor is in their wealth creation journey. Someone with ₹1 crore in investable assets will have very different priorities from someone with ₹10 crore, ₹500 crore or a family office.
As wealth grows, the investment universe expands. Affluent investors typically rely on mutual funds, hybrid funds and debt products, while HNIs and family offices increasingly diversify into global assets, private equity, structured credit, pre-IPO opportunities, alternative investment funds (AIFs) and bespoke portfolio management services (PMS).
The objective is to generate similar or better returns with lower volatility through greater diversification. As portfolios become larger, investors gain access to more sophisticated investment avenues that can improve risk-adjusted returns while reducing concentration risk.
How are HNIs viewing pre-IPO opportunities, and what is your outlook for the IPO market?
Demand for Category II AIFs, particularly private equity and private credit funds, remains very strong. These have become one of the fastest-growing investment categories among wealthy investors. Private equity, in particular, is now a well-established asset class, with many investors progressing from fund investments to co-investment opportunities in unlisted companies.
As for IPOs, the market is inherently cyclical. When sentiment is strong, listings pick up; when uncertainty rises, companies prefer to wait. A few months ago, geopolitical tensions and high oil prices kept many IPOs on hold—not because of valuation concerns, but because investors were reluctant to take fresh risks.
Now that conditions have improved, investors are becoming selective rather than indiscriminately bullish. Companies with strong profitability and reasonable valuations are finding demand, and as market sentiment strengthens further, the IPO pipeline is likely to broaden.
What are the biggest challenges investors are facing in the current market?
At the headline level, Indian equities haven't delivered meaningful returns over the past 18 months, even though well-managed portfolios have largely remained positive. At the same time, the market has become highly polarized, with a handful of sectors hitting new highs while others continue to struggle.
This isn't unique to India. Globally, market leadership has become increasingly narrow, with themes such as artificial intelligence (AI), defence and manufacturing driving most of the gains. Investors therefore need to be more selective, as broad-based market returns have become harder to come by.
As global diversification gains traction, how are HNIs and UHNIs thinking about India? Are they still constructive on the India story, or are premium valuations and slower near-term growth pushing them towards global markets?
It's a bit of both. Global markets have performed well, naturally attracting investor interest. But the bigger reason is that Indian portfolios have historically been under-allocated to global assets. As wealthy Indians become increasingly global in their lifestyles—with overseas travel, education and dollar-linked expenses—it makes sense to diversify beyond India rather than hold an entirely rupee-denominated portfolio.
Traditionally, Indians had indirect dollar exposure through gold, which has served as a hedge against inflation and rupee depreciation. Now, that exposure is increasingly coming through global financial assets.
What are the biggest investment trends you're seeing among UHNIs and family offices?
Three trends stand out. First, allocations to alternative assets, particularly private equity and private credit, are rising steadily. Second, global diversification is becoming an integral part of portfolio construction. Third, succession and estate planning is gaining prominence as wealthy families prepare to transfer assets across generations.
India's next generation is set to inherit unprecedented levels of wealth. As family businesses grow and ownership structures become more complex, wealth transfer and governance are emerging as key priorities alongside investment management.