Indian business tycoon Gautam Adani has surpassed China’s billionaire Zong Shanshan to become Asia’s second-richest man, as per the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Currently, the Adani Group’s net worth is $66.5 billion, while Shanshan’s is $63.6 billion, according to the index.
With this big leap, Adani now comes behind Indian competitor and Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) Chairman Mukesh Ambani. It was in February this year when Ambani overtook Shanshan to become Asia’s wealthiest man. He also ranks first among India’s wealthiest individuals.
Looking at it globally, Ambani is now the 13th richest man, while Adani is at the 14th place on the global billionaires’ list of Bloomberg.
Shanshan, who is the founder and chairman of Nongfu Spring and owner of Beijing Wantai Biological Pharmacy Enterprise, stood sixth on the list of the world’s richest man at a time. However, for the past few months, his net worth has dropped.
Looking into Ambani and Adani’s net worth: The chief of infrastructure-to-renewable energy firm, Adani’s net worth has climbed by $32.7 billion in the past year, while Ambani’s capital has slightly reduced by $175.5 million. As per the index, the net worth of Ambani stands at $76.5 billion.
The rise of Gautam Adani: The man who started out as a commodities trader in 1980, has built an empire on his name in over two decades. Currently, he owns industries from mines, ports, and power plants to airports, data centre, city gas, and defence. Meanwhile, in April, the Adani Group became the third in India to cross $100 billion in market capitalisation.
Within a span of two years, the Adani Group has gained control of seven airports and made a rapid rise in renewable energy capacity addition. His company also won a contract to co-develop a port terminal in Sri Lanka.
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