Gautam Adani becomes world's 5th richest person, surpasses Warren Buffett
What's the story
Gautam Adani, Chairman of Adani Group, has become the fifth-richest person in the world, topping legendary investor and Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffett, as per Forbes. Adani's net worth rose to $123.7 billion as of Friday, while 91-year-old Buffett's total worth remained at $121.7 billion, according to Forbes estimates. This comes just three weeks after Adani joined the $100 billion club earlier in April.
Context
Why does this story matter?
Adani is the CEO of the ports-to-energy conglomerate Adani Group whose fortune had reportedly risen by more than Rs. 6,000 crore a week over the last year. Meanwhile, his income grew by more than 153% in 2021. On April 2, Adani entered the $100B club and within just three weeks he added over $23B as his net worth soared to $123.7B on Friday.
Net worth
Adani's net worth $19B more than Mukesh Ambani's
Adani overtook Warren Buffett as Berkshire Hathaway's shares fell 2% on Friday "amid a broad drop in the US stock market," as per Forbes. Moreover, Adani's estimated net worth of $123.7 billion makes him the richest person in India. His net worth is $19 billion more than the country's second-richest person, Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani, whose total worth is estimated at $104.7 billion.
Top 4
Only four people now wealthier than Adani: Forbes
As per Forbes's real-time billionaire tracker, only four people are wealthier than Adani on the entire planet. SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk is the world's richest with a $269.7 billion net worth, followed by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos ($170.2 billion). In third place is French luxury goods tycoon and LVMH CEO Bernard Arnault ($167.9 billion), followed by Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates ($130.2 billion).
Profile
From a college dropout to becoming India's richest person
Adani is a college dropout who initially dominated the coal industry. He later expanded his fortune into related industries such as green energy and infrastructure, attracting investments from companies such as France's Total SE and Warburg Pincus. The college dropout had surpassed Ambani to become India's wealthiest man earlier in April. Notably, the value of Adani Group's stock has risen over 1,000% since 2020.
India's billionaires
India has 8% of world's total billionaires
Notably, Indian billionaires' total wealth rose by over $700 billion in the last decade. This is equal to the GDP of Switzerland and twice the GDP of the United Arab Emirates and constitutes 8% of the world's total billionaires. There are at least 215 billionaires in India and it remains the third-largest billionaire-generating country in the world, adding to the nation's massive rich-poor divide.