Now, Mukesh Ambani is 9th richest, ahead of Google founders
What's the story
Mukesh Ambani, the chairman and managing director of Reliance Industries, has become the 9th richest person in the world. The business magnate overtook Google founders, Larry Page and Sergey Brin, after RIL's market capitalization crossed the Rs. 10 lakh crore ($140 billion) mark - the first Indian company to achieve the milestone. Here's all about it.
Worth
Ambani's wealth surpassed $70 billion mark
On Thursday, Reliance Industries' shares jumped to a record high of Rs. 1,581 per piece, taking conglomerate's market capitalization to more than Rs. 10 lakh crore or $140 billion (at the current exchange rate). The development took the wealth of Ambani, who is the largest shareholder in RIL, beyond Rs. 5 lakh crore or $70 billion.
Net worth
Net worth increased by $707 million
According to Forbes, Ambani's net worth, calculated by deducting a proportionate share of debt from the total wealth, witnessed an increase of about $707 million. It took his total net worth well beyond $60 billion, helping him overtake Page and Brin and take the spot of 9th richest person in the world. At the time of writing, Ambani's net worth stood at $60.6 billion.
Other members
Page follows closely, Bezos still on top
While Ambani has taken the top spot, it is worth noting that he is being closely followed by both Page and Brin with a net worth of $59.6 billion and $57.5 billion, respectively. Meanwhile, the toppers of the list still include familiar names: Amazon's founder Jeff Bezos, Microsoft's Bill Gates, and French business magnate Bernard Arnault with a net worth over $100 billion.
Growth
Strong performance of oil and telecom ventures
The increase in RIL's market capitalization, and therefore Ambani's worth, can be directly attributed to the strong performance of the company's oil and telecom businesses. Reliance Jio, in particular, has not only raked customers at a faster rate than its competitors Vodafone Idea and Bharti Airtel but its average revenue per customer has also increased up to Rs. 120/customers, which is higher than Vodafone's.