India’s rich got richer despite pandemic with Mukesh Ambani leading the list, Forbes says

The net worth of RIL chairman rose up to 73% last year to $88.7 billion. Gautam Adani took the second spot on the list with a net worth of $25.2 billion.

RIL chairman Mukesh Ambani | Photo: Sanjit Das | Bloomberg File photo

New Delhi: The collective net worth of India’s 100 richest persons rose 14 per cent last year despite the Covid-19 pandemic and a flat BSE Sensex. Reliance Chairman Mukesh Ambani led the list with a $37.3-billion increase in his net worth, according to Forbes India Rich List 2020.

Half of India’s 100 richest saw gains, said the report. Ambani, who took the top spot for the 13th year, was responsible for over half the rise in the collective net worth of these persons.

According to the report, Ambani’s net worth rose up to 73 per cent to touch $88.7 billion, or Rs 6.52 lakh crore. Shares of his Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) rose when he raised over $20 billion for Jio Platforms from top investors like Facebook and Google even during the lockdown.

Ambani was followed by infrastructure major Gautam Adani, who acquired a 74 per cent stake in Mumbai Airport this year. The Adani Ports & SEZ chief has a net worth of $25.2 billion.

Tech tycoon Shiv Nadar, who led HCL Technologies until July, jumped three places to round up the top three with a net worth of $20.4 billion.

Others on the list

Amid the raging pandemic, pharma entrepreneurs saw big jumps, the report noted.

Cyrus Poonawalla, whose private firm Serum Institute of India has joined the race to produce Covid-19 vaccine, witnessed a 26 per cent rise in his net worth to $11.5 billion. He took the sixth spot on the list.

Biocon founder Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw’s wealth also nearly doubled to $4.6 billion. She was placed 27.

The list had nine new names, including Sanjeev Bikhchandani, co-founder of Info Edge (India), siblings Nithin and Nikhil Kamath, co-founders of discount stock brokerage Zerodha Broking; and three specialty chemicals producers — Vinod Saraf, founder of Vinati Organics, Arun Bharat Ram, of SRF, and brothers Chandrakant and Rajendra Gogri of Aarti Industries, said the Forbes report.

More than a third of those on the list saw their wealth decline, especially the ones with interests in real estate.

Around a dozen dropped off, including Future Group founder Kishore Biyani, who sold the bulk of his retail empire to Reliance in August.

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