The Merlion statue in the central business district of Singapore, on Tuesday, July 8, 2025.
Lionel Ng | Bloomberg | Getty Images
A version of this article first appeared in CNBC’s Inside Wealth newsletter with Robert Frank, a weekly guide to the high-net-worth investor and consumer. Sign up to receive future editions, straight to your inbox.
Moneyed entrepreneurs are looking to move, but not necessarily for the reasons you would expect, according to a new survey by HSBC.
The bank polled 2,939 business owners with at least $2 million in investible assets or a total net worth of $20 million during April and May of this year. A whopping 57% reported they were considering adding a new residence over the next 12 months, up from 55% in last year’s survey. Wanderlust is greater among Gen Z entrepreneurs, with just over three-quarters in that cohort reporting they were considering a move.
When asked about their reasons for moving to a new country, only a third of all respondents cited tax efficiency as a motivator. Tax savings ranked eighth overall behind other factors such as improved security and safety (47%) and better education opportunities (52%). Respondents to the survey could select multiple options. The most popular motives at 67% each were to expand their business to new markets or to gain access to new investment opportunities. The desire for a better quality of life came in a close third at 63%.
Taxes, the report said, “create acres of news coverage, but among the majority of our entrepreneurs, this does not appear to be the deciding factor about where to live.”
The report comes as a wealth tax proposal has gained traction in France and amid fears that recent U.K. tax changes will cause a wealth exodus.
A relatively small proportion of U.S. respondents to the HSBC survey cited interest in moving, but those who did were most likely to show interest in experiencing a new culture, accounting for 72% versus the global average of 57% and an average of 61% for ultra-high-net-worth individuals worth at least $100 million. According to the report, French entrepreneurs “are most content to enjoy their own culture” as only 39% indicated interest in moving.
Respondents were most likely to cite Singapore (12%) or the UK (10%) as potential destinations, with Japan and Switzerland tied at 9%. Despite the survey being conducted in the wake of U.S. President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariff announcement in early April, the U.S. was cited by 8% of respondents, the same percentage as last year. However, the U.S. came in fifth in terms of most-desired locations for moving after tying for second place last year.
This year’s report noted that Japan has gained traction with Asian entrepreneurs.
Switzerland was the only country where attaining a better quality of life was a bigger draw (57%) than accessing investment opportunities (49%) or expanding a business (48%). It was also the only hotspot other than Japan where experiencing a new culture ranked higher than educational opportunities.
While entrepreneurs are more likely to consider moving for business reasons, they were more likely to cite worries about adjusting to a new environment (40%) than about reestablishing their business operations (36%).
