FALCON POWERS – Sweden, the wealthy Scandinavian European country that prides itself on being a model of social democracy, has become a haven for obscenely wealthy capitalists who collectively own 70% of Sweden’s GDP, while signs of poor living standards and perhaps poverty are manifesting in many weaker areas of Swedish cities.
A report published by the BBC today on the growing number of the ultra-rich in Sweden despite high taxes and the social equality policies long adopted by the country under the model of the social democratic system, noted that Sweden has become a European magnet for the obscenely wealthy, but is also a country where problems of living poverty are beginning to appear, threatening the model of social equality.
The report highlighted the lavish lifestyles of businessmen and moneyed elites in the capital Stockholm, with luxurious villas featuring swimming pools, private sports facilities, and nightclubs catering exclusively to the ultra-wealthy in the country known for its leftist policies. For nearly a century, mostly left-wing socialist governments in Sweden had promised the Swedish people a fair distribution of income, so that there would be neither obscene wealth nor poverty or social deprivation. However, according to the report, Sweden has witnessed a massive surge in the number of ultra-wealthy individuals over the past three decades.
For example, there were only 28 individuals in Sweden with a net worth of 1 billion Swedish kronor or more in 1996. These were individuals from long-established wealthy Swedish families. But by 2022, the number of billionaires in Sweden had grown to 542, collectively owning around 70% of the country’s GDP.
