A question for our British members:
Sep 19, 2021 01:40:03 #
I've been reading (listening to books) recently by British authors. At times there is a reference to someone being a millionaire. In England, is a millionaire someone whom has attained a net worth of one million pounds, or one million American dollars?
Sep 19, 2021 03:03:26 #
Pablo8
Loc: Nottingham UK.
In the UK, we usually deal in £ sterling., and we avoided the Euro proposed takeover.
Sep 19, 2021 03:20:41 #
I think it often depends on the location of the 'plot', or where the book is written about, rather than the nationality of the author. A British author writing about a plot based in the US, to lets say, assassinate the President (and every 2nd crime novel I read these days seems to cover this), would be referring to US $ if the characters were predominately American.
Sep 19, 2021 04:37:35 #
twosummers
Loc: Melbourne Australia or Lincolnshire England
We don't use US dollars so a UK reference means "worth" in Pounds Sterling (£). I was once asked by a US friend whilst visiting England and looking in a shop window "are these prices US dollars?", it still gets laughs when I tell others.
Sep 19, 2021 06:23:16 #
Bridges wrote:
I've been reading (listening to books) recently by British authors. At times there is a reference to someone being a millionaire. In England, is a millionaire someone whom has attained a net worth of one million pounds, or one million American dollars?
I would think a book written by a Brit about the UK any reference to money would be in pounds. Why would a foreign currency come into play?
Sep 19, 2021 06:45:49 #
I was a millionaire many times over when I lived in Indonesia. There, they count money by the one original coin, the Rupiah. (Think of us only using the penny!) Right now, it takes around 15,000 Rupiah to equal one US dollar.
Sep 19, 2021 08:15:55 #
i would note that, although once a mind- bogglingly huge sum, a million is now fairly modest in the great scheme of things ... the expected earnings on a million would put you in the middle class, if you were frugal, but you'd not be driving a Rolls
Sep 19, 2021 09:16:36 #
I would simply take it as relative to the context of the story location.
Sep 19, 2021 16:04:12 #
In international finance unless something is written for only use in one place they use the US Dollar as a standard reference currency when discussing values, net worth etc. Often written as xxxxUSD. Anyone who has trouble with understanding can just use a conversion app.
Sep 19, 2021 16:08:23 #
It's a small difference.
Just think about being a billionaire. A billion is quite different between the USA and UK.
And millionaires are a dime a dozen these days.
Just think about being a billionaire. A billion is quite different between the USA and UK.
And millionaires are a dime a dozen these days.
Sep 19, 2021 16:22:29 #
There are just short of 52 million people worth $1million in USD in the world. 39% are in the US and 11% are in China
When it comes to billionaires there are 2755 worldwide with 1058 in "Greater China"* and 696 in the US.
*Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan with some including Singapore and other places that are predominately Chinese.
When it comes to billionaires there are 2755 worldwide with 1058 in "Greater China"* and 696 in the US.
*Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan with some including Singapore and other places that are predominately Chinese.
Sep 19, 2021 23:26:17 #
It's funny how I got more responses from other than the UK than from the UK! I may not have asked the question quite right because I didn't really get the response I was looking for. Here in the US, a millionaire is someone with a net worth of a million dollars. Maybe the British don't use or relate to that term but if they consider someone a millionaire, are they talking about someone who has a net worth of one million British Sterling? If that is the case, an American living in GB would have to have a net worth of one million, three-hundred, seventy thousand dollars to be considered a millionaire there, again if people in GB consider such a terminology.
Sep 20, 2021 05:29:03 #
chrissybabe
Loc: New Zealand
robertjerl wrote:
When it comes to billionaires there are 2755 worldwide with 1058 in "Greater China"* and 696 in the US.
*Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan with some including Singapore and other places that are predominately Chinese.
*Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan with some including Singapore and other places that are predominately Chinese.
This is not quite right. "Greater China" does not include Taiwan although Xi Jinping might differ.
Sep 20, 2021 07:49:35 #
A British millionaire will own at least £1,000,000 whereas an American millionaire will own at least $1,000,000. European millionaires will own at least €1,000,000. Interestingly since the American billion has been adopted then there some billionaires owning at least 1,000,000,000 of their respective currencies. Historically a British billion was a million x million and not only a thousand x million - I wonder if under the old definition whether a billionaire would exist today.
Sep 20, 2021 08:38:32 #
In the UK it would be sterling, in France Euros, in Canada Canadian dollars. Car mileage is liters per 100 km and even mpg if you saw that would be to an imperial gallon not an American one. Temperature in Celsius, if it’s 35 outside that’s really hot. Bottom line every country uses their own units.
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