Two Indian-origin women on Forbes' list of richest self-made women
While the controversial inclusion of Kylie Jenner in Forbes' list of America's 60 richest self-made women stole the headlines, it's worth noting that two Indian-origin women also made to the list. Indian-origin tech executives Jayshree Ullal and Neerja Sethi were ranked 18th and 21st on Forbes' list, respectively, with both of them having a net worth of above $1bn. Here's more about them.
The combined net worth of the 60 women is a record $71bn - 15% more than in 2017. The richest in the list is Diane Hendricks, the chair of wholesale roofing distributor ABC Supply, at $4.9bn. Ranked 60th is pop singer Taylor Swift with $320mn.
18th ranked Jayshree Ullal was born in London and raised in India. The 57-year-old has served as the President and CEO of computer networking firm Arista Networks since 2008. Currently, Ullal owns 5% of Arista Network's stocks, some of which she has earmarked for her two children, her nephew, and her niece. Ullal's net worth, according to Forbes' estimates, is $1.35bn.
Interestingly, 14 of the 60 women on Forbes' list were born outside the US. Meanwhile, the vast majority of women on the list, 27, hail from California. Sector-wise, 17 women made their fortunes in fashion and retail, 13 in technology, and 10 in media, entertainment.
Meanwhile, 63-year-old Neerja Sethi is the Vice President of IT consulting and outsourcing company Syntel, a firm which she co-founded with her husband Bharat Desai in 1980 in their apartment in Troy, Michigan. In the first year of operations, Syntel managed a meagre $30,000 in sales. Since then, the company has consistently grown, and recorded $924mn in revenues in 2017. Sethi is worth $1bn.
