While Tesla Inc. (NASADQ:TSLA) CEO Elon Musk remains the world’s richest person, Indian billionaire Gautam Adani has dethroned compatriot Mukesh Ambani to become the richest person in Asia.
What Happened: Adani — chairman of the power-to-ports conglomerate Adani Group —is now the richest person in Asia and the tenth richest person in the world with a net worth of $88.5 billion, as per the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
Adani is also the world’s biggest wealth gainer this year, with a $12 billion surge in his personal fortune this year. He has even beaten the year-to-date gains of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE: BRK-A) chairman Warren Buffett, the only positive gainer among the top ten billionaires on the list this year.
In comparison, Ambani has a net worth of $87.9 billion. He is the chairman and managing director of Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), India’s most valuable company.
Why It Matters: A focus on green energy and a rapid rise in the stocks of companies controlled by Adani catapulted the tycoon to the spot of Asia’s second-richest person in 2021.
Adani’s net worth got a major boost from his renewable energy company Adani Green Energy Limited (AGEL), whose share price almost doubled last year.
AGEL — one of the largest renewable companies in India — has said it plans to become the world’s largest solar player by 2025 and the world’s largest renewable company by 2030.
In addition to Adani’s ambitions in the fast-expanding green energy sector, he is making big investments in airports, ports, power plants and mines.
Adani’s fortunes are expected to get a further boost from the initial public offering of edible oil company Adani Wilmar on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, Ambani’s Reliance Industries is also making a big play in the green energy space.
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Photo: Courtesy of Wikimedia
