Gautam Adani first Indian to be among three richest individuals globally; total net worth reaches $137 bn

Gautam Adani, chairman of the ports-to-power conglomerate Adani Group, has become the first Indian to be among the three richest individuals in the world. He is, in fact, the first Asian to achieve this feat. Mukesh Ambani and Jack Ma, although frequently named in the rich list, had never reached the top three. Adani has surpassed LVMH Moet Hennessy CEO Bernard Arnault and Microsoft founder Bill Gates, and is now just behind Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, as per the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. According to this index, Adani has a net worth of $137 billion. 

Domestically, he has surpassed Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) chairman Mukesh Ambani as the RIL boss currently ranks 11th on the index and has a net worth of $91.9 billion. Going by the Forbes 2022 ranking of billionaires, Adani is on the fourth spot with $141.4 billion net worth whereas Ambani is on the eighth spot with a net worth of $94 billion. 

While both the billionaires may be engaged in a tug-of-war on the billionaires’ rankings, a credit note by ratings agency CreditSights indicated that Adani Group’s strong competition with Reliance Industries could push the ports-to-power conglomerate to make some irrational financial decisions. It added the Gautam Adani-led conglomerate is venturing into new businesses and that it is “deeply over-leveraged.”

The ratings agency further pointed out that Gautam Adani’s empire is exposed to moderate levels of governance and ESH risks. The note read, “In the Adani Group’s favour, we take comfort in its solid banking relationships with both domestic and international banks, which have been willing to lend the group large amounts for both its existing businesses and new ventures.”

The agency further noted it will remain “cautiously watchful of the Group’s expansion appetite,” largely funded via debt. Adani’s big business moves include the indirect acquisition of a 29.2 per cent stake in the Delhi-based media company New Delhi Television Limited (NDTV) this month, acquisition of Swiss firm Holcim’s cement business in India for $10.5 billion in May this year, bidding in the 5G spectrum auction for creating “a private network to support its businesses and data centres” and purchasing 74 per cent stake in Mumbai International Airport (MIAL) in September 2020. 

Meanwhile, shares of Adani Enterprises are up 3.25 per cent at 3,142.70 apiece on the BSE. 

Also read: Reliance rivalry can lead Adani Group to make ‘imprudent financial decisions’: CreditSights

Also read: NDTV vs Adani Group: VPCL knocks on SEBI's door, seeks clarity on RRPRH's stand

Also read: Gautam Adani is not taking on Mukesh Ambani in telecom