Routes to the Top

Johannes König, Christian Schluter and Carsten Schröder

Review of Income and Wealth, 2025, vol. 71, issue 2

Abstract: Who makes it to the top? We use the leading socio‐economic survey in Germany, supplemented by extensive data on the rich, to answer this question. We identify the key predictors for belonging to the top 1 percent of income, wealth, and both distributions jointly. Although we consider many, only a few traits matter: Entrepreneurship and self‐employment in conjunction with a sizable inheritance of company assets is the most important covariate combination across all rich groups. Our data suggest that all top 1 percent groups, but especially the joint top 1 percent, are predominantly populated by intergenerational entrepreneurs.

Date: 2025
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https://doi.org/10.1111/roiw.70015

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Working Paper: Routes to the Top (2023)
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