UK richest 10% claimed half of India's riches during colonial rule
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Oxfam's "Takers not Makers" report reveals that $33.8 trillion of India's wealth went to Britain's richest 10% during colonial rule, devastating India's economy and fueling global inequality.
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People reach for free food being distributed in New Delhi on February 16, 2011. (AFP)
Around $33.8 trillion of India's wealth went to the richest 10% in Britain during the colonial era, Oxfam has found in its new report, Takers not Makers.
The UK-based group said the amount would be enough to carpet London in £50 notes more than four times over, and is nearly half of the estimated $64.82 trillion taken from India from 1765-1900, as British Colonialism had ruled the country for more than 250 years until India's independence in 1947.
This extraction of wealth both enriched the richest 10% of the British Empire and benefited the UK's middle class, which received a further 32% of the funds.
Moreover, colonialism was responsible for the destruction of India's industrial sector and output, as colonial powers including Britain, France, Portugal, and the Netherlands implemented protectionist policies that targeted textiles from Asia, devastating India which in 1750 accounted for close to 25% of the global industrial output. The figure dropped to a mere 2% by the year 1900.
The report, which was released ahead of the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, pointed out the lasting impact of colonialism on inequality and economic systems, affecting countries to this day.
Oxfam said, "Legacies of inequality and pathologies of plunder, pioneered during the time of historical colonialism, continue to shape modern lives," adding, "Wealth transfers not just to the ultra-rich, but disproportionately to the ultra-rich in the Global North. Ours is the age of billionaire colonialism."
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Oxfam Executive Director Amitabh Behar said we have entered an era of "billionaire supremacy," with the "jewel in the crown" being Donald Trump and Elon Musk.
"Just last year, billionaires have added $2 trillion to their wealth. This is three times faster than the previous year. Pretty much for the top ten billionaires, it’s 100 million every day."
We need an honest reckoning with the oligarchy problem. When we talk about oligarchs, we should be thinking about the ultra, ultra-wealthy, and their startling ability to shape rules in ways that benefit themselves, often at the expense of everyone else.
— Amitabh Behar (@AmitabhBehar) January 20, 2025
The unfortunate reality… https://t.co/AhSiE8XqOR
Billionaires’ wealth grows by $2 trillion in 2024
Oxfam's "Takers Not Makers" also shed light on the wealth being accumulated by billionaires, as it revealed that the world’s billionaires increased their wealth by $2 trillion (£1.64 trillion) in 2024, growing three times faster than in 2023. This equates to $5.7 billion (£4.7 billion) gained daily.
The report warns that the global economic system is enabling this rapid accumulation of wealth while nearly half the world’s population remains in poverty. Oxfam projects that the world could have five trillionaires within the next decade—a sharp rise from its earlier forecast of one trillionaire in the same period.
Oxfam highlighted a troubling disparity: While billionaire wealth skyrockets, the number of people living below the World Bank poverty line of $6.85 a day remains stagnant at 3.6 billion—44% of the global population. Extreme poverty disproportionately affects women, with one in ten living on less than $2.15 a day, meaning 24.3 million more women than men endure such conditions.
Progress in poverty reduction has stalled, and Oxfam asserts that reducing inequality could triple the pace of eradicating extreme poverty.
The UK leads the G7 nations in billionaire wealth concentration. Wealth among UK billionaires rose by £35 million daily to £182 billion in 2024, adding four new billionaires: Mark Dixon of IWG, Sunder Genomal of Page Industries, Donald Mackenzie of CVC, and Jim Thompson of Crown Worldwide.
Globally, the number of billionaires grew by 204 in 2024, reaching 2,769. Their collective wealth soared from $13 trillion to $15 trillion, marking the second-largest annual increase on record. The 10 richest men saw their wealth grow by an average of $100 million per day. Even if they lost 99% of their fortunes, they would remain billionaires.
Oxfam’s analysis indicates that 60% of billionaire wealth comes from inheritance, cronyism, corruption, or monopolistic practices, with 18% derived solely from monopoly power.
Its inequality policy lead, Anna Marriott, stated, "Last year we predicted the first trillionaire could emerge within a decade, but this shocking acceleration of wealth means that the world is now on course for at least five. The global economic system is broken, wholly unfit for purpose as it enables and perpetuates this explosion of riches, while nearly half of humanity continues to live in poverty."
She urged governments, including the UK, to adopt economic policies aimed at reducing inequality through higher taxation on the super-rich.
