[REVISION HISTORY]

Global and South Korean wealth inequality trends

Updated 1 time since CLSTR started tracking revisions of this situation.

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2026-10-10 02:23 UTC → 2026-10-26 02:55 UTC · added ~~removed~~

Financial data indicates a widening wealth gap and increasing economic disparities in South Korea. Initial reports highlighted significant wealth inequality among minors, noting that while total savings for minors reached 9.74 trillion won, 77.5% of them held less than 1 million won. This period also saw declining physical banking access in rural areas, with the number of districts where ATM distances exceed 2km rising from 10 to 17. Subsequent data expanded the scope of these disparities to the broader household level. In South Korea, while average net assets rose by 5.0%, the net assets of the bottom 20% of households decreased by 4.9%, with the top 10% now controlling 46.1% of national net assets. This trend is driven by a disparity in savings capacity and rising real estate prices. Similar patterns of wealth concentration and shrinking net worth among lower-income groups were also observed in the United States. Recent findings from the Korean Statistical Information Service (KOSIS) show that asset inequality has surged, with the total asset gap between the top and bottom quintiles reaching 68.6 times, surpassing the 2022 record. Housing inequality has reached a record high, as the gap in average residential housing prices between the top 20% and bottom 20% of households reached 290.1 times. While the gap in disposable income has shown signs of narrowing, the concentration of approximately 70% of household assets in real estate continues to exacerbate the divide between property owners and non-owners.

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