Knight Frank Wealth Report: London and New York Remain Favourite Cities of Ultra-Rich for Next Decade

London and New York are expected to remain the favourable haunts of the ultra-rich over the next decade, but Hong Kong is catching up, according to a report.

London is home to 4,224 ultra-high net worth individuals (UHNWIs), or people with $30m or more in net assets, according to the 2014 Wealth Report by property management firm Knight Frank.

This is more than any other city in 2013. London's top rank is expected to be overtaken by New York by 2023.

Knight Frank added that three of the top five most important cities will be in Asia by 2024, with Hong Kong expected to overtake current number three city, Singapore. This will bump Geneva out of the top five.

"History, location and their long-established wealth mean that London and New York's positions look unassailable, at least for now," said Liam Bailey, global head of research at Knight Frank.

"It is further down our leader board that the real city wars are being waged. The main battleground is Asia, where a handful of locations are slugging it out in the hope of establishing a clear lead as the region's alpha urban hub," he said.

Top 10 Cities: Current and Forecast

The Middle East top five includes Istanbul and Abu Dhabi, which are expected to attract lots of wealth in coming years, close behind top spot Dubai.

Sao Paulo, Istanbul, Abu Dhabi, Mumbai and Sydney are the five fastest growing city hotspots this year.

The report also said the number of ultra-wealthy individuals across the world rose by 3% last year, despite continued economic turbulence.

The number of UHWNIs is set to grow by nearly 30% over the next decade, and is expected to double in India and Africa and grow 80% in China.