Post-2014, India ‘Richer’ by 601 New Billionaires, Mukesh Ambani on Top

Mumbai: India added a whopping 601 new billionaires since 2014, with Reliance Industries Ltd Chairman Mukesh Ambani topping the ‘Barclays Hurun India Rich List-2018’ for the seventh consecutive year with an estimated wealth of Rs 371,000 crore. As per the report, in 2014, there were 230 billionaires or multi-billionaires, which shot up to 831 in 2018 in the BHI Rich List.

Earlier, in 2012, the figure was a modest 59 billionaires, which climbed to 141 in 2013. But after notching 230 billionaires in 2014, the list has grown phenomenally with 296 (2015), 339 (2016), 617 (2017) and now 831 billionaires in 2018.

Similarly, the number of USD billionaires in India in the past seven years at the prevailing exchange rates has shot up from 59 (2012) to 141 (2018) as the USD’s value grew from INR 55.60 to INR 68.40 during the period. Among women, there was only one self-made billionaire in 2013, which increased to 11 in 2018. Women multi-billionaires shot up from just five in 2013 to 136 this year.

The cumulative wealth of these 831 individuals featured in the latest list stands at USD 719 billion, or one-quarter of the Indian GDP of USD 2,848 billion as per the IMF’s April 2018 estimates. After Mukesh Ambani, next comes S.P. Hinduja and family of Hinduja Group with an estimated wealth of Rs 159,000 crore, Arcelor-Mittal’s L.N. Mittal and family at Rs 114,500 crore in the top bracket.

Following them are: Wipro’s Azim Premji at Rs 96,100 crore, Sun Pharmaceuticals Ltd’s Dilip Shanghvi at Rs 89,700 crore, Kotak Mahindra Bank’s Uday Kotak at Rs 78,600 crore, Serum Institute of India’s Cyrus Poonawalla at Rs 73,000 crore, Adani Group’s Gautam Adani and family at Rs 71,200 crore, Shapoorji Pallonji Mistry’s Cyrus P. Mistry at Rs 69,400 crore,

Five of the Top 10 belong to Maharashtra, one each from Gujarat and Karnataka, two are London-based and one is in Monaco, as per the rich list. As expected, the country’s commercial capital Mumbai tops the billionaires’ list with 233 names, followed by New Delhi at 163 and IT capital Bengaluru at 70, said Barclays Private Clients CEO S.N. Bansal.

The annual list is a compilation of the super-richest Indians having a net worth of Rs 1,000 crore or more. This number has increased by a staggering one-third - from 617 in 2017 to 831 in 2018, said Hurun Report India’s Managing Director Rahman Junaid. While 306 new entrants made it to the list this year, 75 of those featured in 2017 failed to find a place in the super exclusive club this year. “The Indian edition of the list is the fastest growing rich list in the world, highlighting the optimism of a young, vibrant and ambitious country,” Junaid pointed out. (IANS)