smallbusiness.co.uk: Helping your business think big

Entrepreneurs who are likely to take risks have more chance of being wealthy then their more risk-adverse counterparts, new research has revealed.

A new report by Barclays Wealth shows that some 60 per cent of entrepreneurs with $1 million (£500,000) worth of assets claim that their risk taking approach was a key factor in their wealth.

And conversely, among respondents with assets below $1 million only 36 per cent said they had a risk-taking approach.

Commenting on the findings, Kevin Lecocq, chief investment officer at Barclays Wealth, says: 'This report reinforces the importance of the link between risk and wealth generation.'

He adds: 'What is interesting is the anomaly between an individual’s willingness to take risks when creating wealth and their reduced appetite for risk when it comes to investing that money.'

The study also revealed that the riskiest entrepreneurs tend to come from South Africa with Britons likely to take a risk-adverse approach to their busineses.