The UK may not rival Monaco or the Cayman Islands as a playground for the well-to-do, yet the numbers of super-rich Britons has surged ahead in recent years.

A survey by Datamonitor has found that in the past five years, the number of people with �5m ($7.7m) in onshore liquid assets has more than doubled, from 1,500 in 1997 to 3,300 by the end of 2001.

Most of those that have joined the multi-millionaire club in the UK have done so of their own bat rather than inheriting wealth.

Computers, technology and media rank high as industries where the nouveau-riche make money.

And the UK's booming housing market has meant that property development has also become a major way for people to join the ranks of the super-rich.

Older means wealthier

The people classed as "ultra high net worths" are far from high-flying twenty-somethings.

One third of them are between the ages of 55 and 64 whereas only 23% of the general population is in this age group.

Being super-rich would be many people's ideal but Datamonitor says that wealth can bring headaches of its own.

Deutsche Bank, for example, offers some private clients guidance on how to give effectively.

The bank also runs conferences aimed at the sons and daughters of the super-rich on the responsibilities that wealth brings and even how to avoid gold diggers.