Indians richest immigrant group in USA

[Guest guest]

Merrill estimates 200,000 NRI millionaires in US

CHIDANAND RAJGHATTA

 

TIMES NEWS NETWORK[ WEDNESDAY, MAY 14, 2003 08:50:23 PM ]

WASHINGTON: The image of the wealthy NRI from America is poised to get a puffy boost following estimates from the investment firm Merrill Lynch that there are 200,000 millionaires of Indian origin in the United States alone.

 

 

If that seems a staggering count – it would mean one in every nine Indians in the US is a millionaire, considering their total population is 1.8 million – Merrill has a raft of riders and caveats.

 

 

It includes not just NRIs but all people of Indian-origin; the estimate was made at the height of the 2000 technology bubble; and crucially, the definition of a millionaire is broad enough to include all assets including home ownership.

 

 

Still, the 200,000 Indian-origin "Merrill Millionaires", along with their less wealthy NRIs, carry the median American NRI income to over $60,000 (compared to the national average of $38,885), making it the wealthiest immigrant group in the United States, say Merrill Lynch executives.

 

 

For the record, the United States has an estimated 2.1 million millionaires, which is less than one per cent of its population compared to the nearly 10 per cent for Indian-Americans.

 

 

The size of the Indian entrepreneur market in Silicon Valley alone comprised 200,000 people with wealth worth $60 billion even in late 2001 after the technology bubble, according to Jyoti Chopra, director of South Asian business at Merrill Lynch's multicultural and diversified business development group. Enough reason for the firm to expand its South Asia wealth management focus.

 

 

In announcing this drive, Merrill executives said India's expertise in the information technology and software industries helped grow the wealth of many non-resident Indians in the US, but also reduced their net worth as the Internet bubble burst. The Indian community in the US was probably affected by these events more than any other expatriate community in the world.

 

 

"However, this is a cohesive and resilient community and many people have renewed vigour in their business operations and investments," said Subha Barry, first vice president and head of Merrill Lynch's multicultural and diversified business development group.

 

 

Chopra noted that South Asians continue to find success in the US as technology entrepreneurs, physicians and health care providers, small business owners, and corporate executives.

 

 

Studies by Merrill Lynch show that the NRI community is highly conservative when it comes to business and finance, with a strong propensity towards saving.

 

 

"Education and saving for future education needs, for the next generation, continues to be a high priority," says Chopra. Retirement saving and planning is also very important, particularly among segments such as NRI physicians and health care providers.

http://www.sulekha.com/redirectnh.asp?cid=309305

[Gauracandra 1]

However, there is a bit of a selection bias in the results. What kind of people are able to emigrate from India to the U.S.? I suspect for the most part the wealthier, higher educated class. For instance, the U.S. has a program of bringing in Indian doctors if they serve for a period of time in underserved areas (inner city, native american reservations etc...). Also, software engineers are going to be high income earners. Sikhs have also done very well, and in many areas (from what I've read) control large areas of agricultural production.

[Guest guest]

It depends on whether you include the Jewish populace of America as an immigrant group. For theyre certainly the wealthiest minority group.

[Guest guest]

In the USA - Indians are considered the wealthiest ethnic group, ahead of the Jewish community.

 

The software industy boom took them way ahead in one wave.

[Guest guest]

The Merrill numbers are supposed to indicate individuals. However, it is more meaningful to think of

these in terms of households, because, in the US, property rights are typically shared between spouses

even if assets are held in individual names (unless there are pre-nuptial agreements, which are

probably quite rare among Indian immigrants). If there are 200,000 individual millionaires, I would

estimate at least 200,000 millionaire households, maybe more.

 

Assuming a conservative estimate of three members per household, the total population of 1.8 million

amounts to 600,000 households. That means, one in three Indian households is a millionaire household!

 

Wow!

 

 

[Guest guest]

Most Indians come to Us and sell their souls in order to chase the GREENBACKS.

[Guest guest]

I would like to know what these Indian Millionares give back to India. I am happy that many Indians are becoming Financially Rich in foriegn countries but come on guys you have to try and make the Motherland better and start investing in helping to make India a better and prosperous place.

Not all Indians abroad are as well of as the Millionares cluib and a alot of people would go back to India if things were better there, we should all help to make it a better place using everthing we have learnt in the west.

[Guest guest]

Indians came to this country so as to fill up their empty stomachs. They were unable to get three meals a day. Americans gave them a generous treatment and encouraged them to grow economically. They came from a Hindu country where Christians are killed and their churches burned. Pious nuns have been raped and killed but American Christians have paid them in the same coin. It is time that the Christians formulate a policy to deal with these dirty people who are getting fatter here at their cost.

[I_love_krishna_ 0]

Are you like a dot buster or something? this is really offensive.

 

My family came from India and they weren't poor. My dad got a job transfer to this country so he came here and made some good money with much sincerety to his job.

 

He never hated a christian or any other religious group. Christians are not killed in India, I had a christian friend in India who has high ambitions and he is not subject to any discrimination due to this religion.

 

The muslims in India are different though, 70% of all muslims in India hate anyone who is a nonmuslim. They basically try to destroy deity idols and try to sabotage hindu worship sites. They also sabotage Christian and Jewish (small population) worship sites in India.

 

 

Most Indians who come here nowadays are either

A) Doctors

B) Computer Scientists/Programmers

C) Professors in Science/mathematics...

D) Priests (For temples in U.S.A.)

You are spreading some sort of sick PROPAGANDA, This is very offensive and I feel DISGUSTED by YOU.

 

You are probably a SOUTHERN AMERICAN. Who grew up in really segregated place and have formed all these misconceptions about people.

 

For you , there is only one thing in mind : CHRISTIANS=GOOD... OTHER RELIGIONS= THE DEVIL.

 

dude, I would recommend some counselling, may be you were abused in your past or something. /images/graemlins/mad.gif

 

[I_love_krishna_ 0]

The people here are doing alot for India actually.

 

Example : There is a neighbor next to my grandpa's house in India , he is a surgeon now in India, but he was a surgeon here in the U.S.A.

 

He left to India to help the poor, even though he has a big house there and his family lives in a very aristrocratic way (big cars, and alot of money), he makes huge amounts of money so that, he can give it away to the poor.

 

He does not charge the poor for the surgery though, there are many free surgeries that he does for people by paying out of his pocket... he is a really bright person... a truly selfless person.

 

He also has a great shine in his face. He is old now, but he was doing this from a long time ago, he went to India in the 70s/80s(I am speculating).

 

But, he helps the poor by also giving them free medicines.

 

Most people in India don't have the money to pay for their medical bills and his patients are taken care of (both financially/ medically) by him.

 

******************************************************

 

So, people from U.S.A. like the person above do help out in India. Even though most of the people here go there and spend alot of money for themselves... they also take a chunk of that money and spend it for the overall society.

 

[Guest guest]

I could not have said it better myself!!!!

[Guest guest]

Then why are there no Indian millionaires in India or other countries?

[Guest guest]

It is how you consider what is the value of currency.

Here you need at least $100.00 a day for a small famliy

to have food & shelter. Its the same in India

they need approximately Rs.100.00 a day. It is when you start converting that into Dollars that, people think the people in India are poor, because $2.00 is equivalant to

Rs. 100.00. But they do not need cars for transportation,

like in USA because you do not travel too far for your livelyhood, and if you do need to travel they do have good public transportation. In US car is one of the major expence for a working class. The second is the housing where

they still live in extended family, so the overall cost is not as high as in US. So if you consider $100.00 per Rs.100.00 they do have a large number of millionaire per

capita in India.

[Guest guest]

It looks like you are not an informed person, may be not even educated. People who are educated do get ahead in the

world. And there are more millionaire in the world than in

US.

[Guest guest]

It looks like you are not an informed person, may be not even educated. People who are educated do get ahead in the

world. And there are more millionaire in the world than in

US.

 

[Guest guest]

I am just an innocent Jew asking for simple answers. I wasn't passing judgment. I was wondering why Indians are doing so poorly in their own country. How come Merrill has reports on Indian millionaires in US, and not the INdian millionaries in India, if any? Does that mean there are no rich guys in India, everybody is poor? Being a Jew, I find it hard to understand that kind of grinding poverty. It is so easy to be rich and successful, naturally I don't understand the reasons behind India's failure as a nation, though as individuals, they do well in US.

[Guest guest]

There are many rich people in India. There are more poor people. To understand why, you would have to study a long time.

 

People go where there is the most opportunity. That is one of the reasons why Jews came to the U.S. also. As a matter of fact, one may ask why there were so many Jews in Rome and Greece in the first century. Why weren't they all busy being happily rich in Palestine?

 

Wealth attracts wealth. The U.S. is the richest country in the world, mainly because of a number of coincidences--a big, easily conquerable land full of fertile soil and raw materials, the rise of industrialization and education, cultural similarities with the great imperial powers, open-door immigration policy, etc., etc.

 

The biggest blocks to Indian development are overpopulation and the caste system, which restricts education and opportunities for a large block of people.

 

When I was in London, I had a friend who had been a doctor in Bombay. He was given a scholarship to study neurosurgery in England. Who would not have taken the opportunity? When he got to England, he was offered a good job at a salary he would never have been able to make in India. Living conditions in London are far more attractive than in Bombay. He told me had started out idealistic--he would get his post-graduate degree and then return to India to share his experience, but after a while, as he became accustomed to the degree of comfort in the West, he found it more and more difficult to return.

 

The West consciously recruits such people. Scholarships are offered to the most talented and bright young people in third world, who once educated are recruited to good positions in universities, hospitals and high tech firms. It is almost impossible to resist the temptation.

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

70% of muslims in India hate foreigners/nonmuslims?? Wow...are you one tolerant individul...

 

India is a poor country. Indian hindus murdered several Australian missionaries not too long ago. And the country is a backwards hellhole. India CAN NEVER COME CLOSE TO AMERICAN PROSPERITY (as long as American maintains a Euro majority).

[I_love_krishna_ 0]

Go get some knowledge before you try to bash people who live in India.

 

I agree that the poverty in India is horrible. The information that you get here is delusional and biased western propaganda.

[Guest guest]

To the poor, unenlightened, and probably uneducated soul who stated that India is a "backward hellhole"

 

How do you define 'backward'?

a) In terms of money? - (which seems to be the only language that Americans understand!!)

If this is the definition, then yes, India is backward

 

b) In terms of basic human/ cultural values?

The U.S. is in the Stone Age compared to India!

FYI, the divorce rate is <1% in India, vs. what, 50-60% in the U.S?? What does marriage mean (if anything) to you people?

And no, we don't have children shooting each other in Schools!

And no, we don't have so many Serial Murderers who kill just for the fun of it!

And no, we don't have 12-yr olds getting pregnant!

And most of all, unlike Americans, we don't have this megalomaniacal tendency to think that we're ALWAYS RIGHT and everyone else is ALWAYS WRONG!! that we're the best and everyone else on the planet sucks wind!

...Maybe that's why Indians are so successful in the US!

Because WE DON"T THINK/ SAY WE"RE BETTER THAN EVERYONE ELSE, WE PROVE IT THROUGH HARD WORK!!

 

Yes, some people murdered an Australian missionary. But are they representative of all Hindus?

NO, of course not! just as the moron who murdered a Sikh after 9/11 in Arizona isn't representative of all White Christian Men! And just like the IRA terrorists who keep killing people in Belfast aren't representative of all the world's Catholics!!

 

And if you think it's Hindus in particular who are "dirty"

(I think it was someone else who said that)...let me enlighten you further...

Hinduism is the ONLY religion that states VERY CLEARLY that God may have many names & is worshipped in many forms, but HE IS THE SAME GOD, not matter what you call him!!

 

So we don't go around saying Christians/ Muslims are sinners/ uncivilized just because they don't worship god in the same form!

 

So what moral high ground were you preaching from again?

 

 

[Guest guest]

To the person who said that India is a "failed nation"

 

OH REALLY? funny, then why are we still a democracy after 56 years of independence, when ANY other country with even the slightest of ethnic/ religious conflict has failed miserably at democracy?

 

Why is it that we're growing our GDP at 6-7% a year, in spite of a global economic recession???

 

And why, pray tell me, is it that in the past 10 years alone, the percentage of people under the poverty line has fallen by a full 10%!! (from 36% to 26%)

While in the same 10 years, (according to the US Census Bureau) the poverty rate in the US has GONE UP from 11.3% to 11.7%

 

If we continue at the same rate, in 10 more years, our poverty level will be down to 16%, which is not much more than that of the US!

 

And one more point - If we were a "failed nation" then why is it that so many people educated in India literally walk on water when they get into the US education system?

Everyone I know who went to the US for a Master's degree got a 3.9 or 4.0 GPA !!

There are at least 5-10 people EVERY YEAR in India who score a perfect 2400 in the GRE test...

 

Failed Nation? Really? The hard data doesn't seem back up your assertion....

[Guest guest]

 

I have to disagree with you. I am Indian and I know that india is backward in many ways. India is economically backward.

 

Here is my view points about some of the listings under item (b).

 

Low divorce rate : - (this is a lame reasoning!)

You are talking about human/cultural vaues. I don't think India is better than any other country in that matter. A low divorce rate is not an explanation for it. Did you ever asked yourself the question "why divorce rate is low in Inida?". It is not because all these people are "happily" married. It is because they have no other option. They are grounded for life. Most of the Indian women depend on their parents or husbands for everything. Even if they are not happy with the marriage, they can't get out because they are not financially independet. Also the pressure from the society is another reason all those unhappy people remain "married" under the same roof. You know that it is not easy for a divorcee to get married again.

 

Children shooting in schools.

 

It is good that we don't have any children shooting in schools. But you need to remember that a majority of the indian population can not afford three meals a day! So just forget about buying a gun in the first place.

 

We have not so many serial killers.

 

This may be true. But what about all the people killing each other in the name of religion and politics. I am not talking about any particular religion. I think they are all the same.

 

It is good that we don't have many 12 yr olds getting pregnant and I hope that it will never happen in the future!

 

 

Talking about pride and prejudice, Indians are no better. How many Indians do you know that treats all the races equally here in the US ? They always admire the superior race and looks down on other races. And the stupid cast system in India is nothing but another version of racism.

 

 

So we need to do lot of thinking in all these areas before claiming that we are ahead or better than anyone else.

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

viswa dharma