- The 2025 Chubb Australia Wealth Report has revealed how the country’s high-net-worth individuals are spending their disposable income.
- With a sample size of 200 who own investible assets between $5 million and $50+ million, it’s no longer about accruing for the sake of accruing.
- “This report looks at the connection between asset and identity… wealth is no longer just owned, it’s lived,” explains Head of Personal Lines ANZ Angela Capponi.
Wealth has never been expressed in square footage and share portfolios alone.
For instance, if you were to survey Australia’s most affluent – precisely in the manner Chubb recently has – you’d learn it’s also about expressing one’s passions through what you can touch, see, wear, and most crucially, hand down.
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According to the global insurance leader’s latest Australia Wealth Report, 79% of the country’s high-net-worth (HNW) families and individuals now own a personal collection – priced in the millions – spanning jewellery, art, watches, and designer accessories. Though you’d be mistaken in assuming these were nothing more than indulgences and novelty-based alternative investments.
The rise of collectible wealth tells a story about the shifting psychology behind affluence itself.
Once upon a time, the Australian dream was almost entirely anchored in property and superannuation. But as markets fluctuate (and diversification becomes the name of the game), tangible assets with both aesthetic and emotional value have found a new place in the hierarchy.
In the past year alone, 46% of surveyed HNW Australians planned to expand their collections in the following categories:
- 70% – Jewellery
- 49% – Fine art
- 44% – Watches/timepieces
- 43% – Designer accessories
- 38% – Rare coins
- 27% – Fine wine
- 16% – Stamps
- 11% – Sports
- 10% – Collector cars
Among those questioned, a third already held investible assets between $10 million and $25 million, another third had between $25 million and $50 million, while approximately 20% boasted more than $50 million.
This isn’t about hoarding baubles in private vaults, either.
The report reveals a deeper motivation: collections as identity, purpose, and permanence. A Patek Philippe isn’t just a timepiece – it’s proof of discernment. A Rothko hanging in a climate-controlled room might signify cultural fluency more than mere net worth. These possessions narrate who their owners are and, perhaps more importantly, who they hope to be remembered as.
Of course, sentiment doesn’t make assets invincible. As the Chubb report notes, the wealthy are facing a “legacy gap”: 68% of those retaining assets between $5 and $10 million admit they don’t know who will inherit their collections. In other words, these symbols of permanence risk becoming orphans of fortune.
Conveniently concluded, given the company that’s published these finds, the emotional currency of a painting or heirloom ring is often far greater than its appraised value, yet many apparently fail to protect or plan for that reality.
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Angela Capponi, Head of Personal Lines at Chubb Australia and New Zealand, frames it succinctly: “Protecting a collection means more than replacement value. It is about preserving stories, significance, and future value through expert advice and proactive protection.”
What we are witnessing is not a retreat into materialism, but a new form of meaning-making. Whether it’s diamond bracelets, vintage Ferraris, or mid-century sculptures – essentially stories told in precious gems, limited edition engines, and stone – the wealthy are collecting with intent not just to diversify holdings, but to ensure their very memory. In other words, you can’t take it with you, but you might be able to leave a little bit of yourself behind with it.
At least that’s what Chubb believes.
