Who are India's top 10 richest billionaires?
Thanks to India’s booming business environment – the fastest-growing major economy in the world – there has been a meteoric rise in the wealth of the country’s elite and company owners.
Once dominated by prominent business families like the Tatas, Birlas, or Ambanis, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of self-made billionaires.
CEOWORLD Magazine recently published its “India Rich List for 2018”, which ranks the wealthiest individuals in the world’s fastest-growing economy.
Most of the top 10 are self-made billionaires who built empires in software services, pharmaceuticals, finance, metals, and energy.
A few of them inherited stakes in their families’ companies.
Mukesh Ambani, chairman of Reliance Industries, tops the list with a net worth of US$47.8 billion.
Take a look at who else made it into the top 10 spots this year:
10. Savitri Jindal
Savitri Jindal, chairwoman of Jindal Group, is the widow of its founder, Om Prakash Jindal.
After his death in a helicopter crash in 2005, the group’s companies – which include JSW Steel, JSW Energy, JSW Infrastructure and Jindal Steel & Power – were divided among her four sons.
Net worth: US$8.2 billion
Age: 68
Industry: steel
Source of wealth: Widow of Jindal Group founder, Om Prakash Jindal
9. Cyrus Poonawalla
In 1966, Cyrus Poonawalla, the son of a horse breeder, founded Serum Institute of India.
He has built the company into one of the world’s largest vaccine makers.
Net worth: US$8.3 billion
Age: 73
Industry: vaccine manufacturing
Source of wealth: self-made
8. Uday Kotak
After completing his master’s degree in business administration Uday Kotak turned down a lucrative job offer from Hindustan Unilever – the Indian unit of Unilever – to start his own finance company in 1985.
It became a financial service conglomerate and in 2003 the group’s flagship company, Kotak Mahindra Finance was granted a banking licence and became Kotak Mahindra Bank.
Today it is among India’s top four private sector banks.
Net worth: US$10.5 billion
Age: 59
Industry: banking
Source of wealth: self-made
7. Radhakishan Damani
In 2002, the Mumbai-based investor Radhakishan Damani ventured into retail by opening a suburban store.
After a successful initial public offering in 2017 – when shares in the company were offered on a public stock exchange the first time – his hypermarket chain DMart remains unscathed despite the rise of e-commerce in India.
Net worth: US$10.9 billion
Age: 63
Industry: retail and investments
Source of wealth: self-made
6. Dilip Shanghvi
In 1983, Dilip Shanghvi borrowed US$200 from his father to start Sun Pharmaceutical.
Now, the company is the world’s fourth-largest generic drug manufacturer.
Net worth: US$11.9 billion
Age: 62
Industry: pharmaceuticals
Source of wealth: self-made
5. Kumar Birla
Kumar Birla is chairman of Aditya Birla Group, one of India’s most valuable conglomerates.
He inherited the family empire at the age of 28, following the death of his father, Aditya Birla.
Net worth: US$14.8 billion
Age: 51
Industry: commodities, telecom and financial services
Source of wealth: inherited
4. Shiv Nadar
In 1976, Shiv Nadar co-founded his company, HCL, in a garage, to make microprocessors.
Now, the company is India’s fourth-largest software services provider.
Net worth: US$14.8 billion
Age: 68
Industry: software services
Source of wealth: self-made
3. Lakshmi Mittal
Lakshmi Mittal is chairman of ArcelorMittal, the world’s biggest steelmaker.
In 2006, he merged Mittal Steel with France’s Arcelor in a US$33 billion deal.
Net worth: US$18.1 billion
Age: 68
Industry: steel
Source of wealth: inheritance and self-made.
2. Azim Premji
Azim Premji is chairman of Wipro, India’s third-largest software services provider.
In 1966 he returned from Stanford University, in the United States, to take over the running of the family’s cooking-oil business after his father’s death.
He later moved the company into new areas of business, including computing and software.
Net worth: US$20.9 billion
Age: 73
Industry: software services
Source of wealth: self-made
1. Mukesh Ambani
Mukesh Ambani is chairman and the largest shareholder of the oil-to-retail conglomerate Reliance Industries.
The company was founded as a textile manufacturer by his late father, the tycoon Dhirubhai Ambani in 1966.
In 2016, Mukesh Ambani revolutionised India’s telecom sector by introducing cheap mobile phone data and calling services.
The company offers data plans starting at 50 rupees (US$0.70) per gigabyte and monthly plans as low as 149 rupees (US$2).
Net worth: US$47.8 billion
Age: 61
Industry: oil and gas, telecom, retail, petrochemicals and textiles
Source of wealth: inheritance and self-made
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Nation – the world’s fastest-growing major economy – sees big rise in number of self-made billionaires, ‘top 10 rich list’ in ‘CEOWORLD Magazine’ reveals