At the end of 2009, China had 670,000 households with more than $1 million wealth, up 60 percent from the same period in 2008. And the country`s composite wealth grew by some 28 percent from the end of 2008 to the end of 2009, to $5.4 trillion, BCG`s latest research shows.

"The fast increase is driven by China`s strong economic growth, the rise of private-sector enterprises and the development of capital markets," said Frankie Leung, partner and managing director of BCG.

According to BCG`s research, entrepreneurs account for the majority of China`s high-net-worth population (those with assets under management exceeding $1 million), but there are growing numbers of wealthy Chinese who have different sources of wealth, such as executives, professional investors, and the independently wealthy.

In addition, the mix of entrepreneurs is diversifying beyond real estate, manufacturing and commodities into industries such as the pharmaceutical and high technology.

Meanwhile, wealth is spreading beyond coastal regions to second- and third-tier cities throughout the nation.

In 2009, Guangdong, Zhejiang, Jiangsu and Shandong provinces, and Beijing and Shanghai accounted for more than half of millionaire households` wealth. But the central and western regions are expected to attract more investment during China`s 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-2015), thus laying the groundwork for wealth to spread across the nation, and, more specifically, to cities away from the coast.

Despite its remarkable growth, China`s composite wealth still has tremendous room to expand.