India’s richest man and CMD of Reliance Industries Mukesh Ambani has overtaken Warren Buffett to become the eighth richest man, according to the latest Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
Ambani’s wealth is now worth $68.3 billion, surpassing Buffett’s $67.9 billion as of July 9, Bloomberg reported.
RIL shares have gained 21.63 percent in 2020, at a time when businesses have been impacted by the coronavirus pandemic, on the issuance of partly paid-up equity shares and stake sale of 25.09 percent in its digital arm — Jio Platforms — to marquee global investors such as Facebook , General Atlantic, Silver Lake, Vista Equity Partners, KKR and Mubadala Investment Company, ADIA, TPG Capital, L Catterton, PIF and Intel Capital.
The company has become debt-free much ahead of its March 2021 target. It had also received $1 billion from BP for 49 percent stake in Jio-BP venture to set up thousands of petrol stations across India to tap the booming energy demand.
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Ambani is the only Asian tycoon in the exclusive club of the world’s top 10 richest people last month, which began in 2012. Warren Buffett’s wealth dropped this week after he gave away $2.9 billion in charity.
The report said the 89-year-old, known as the Oracle of Omaha, has slipped down the rankings after he gave away more than $37 billion of Berkshire Hathaway shares since 2006. The Berkshire Hathaway’s stock has underperformed this year and is down 20.65 percent.
The report added that the country has emerged as a hot-spot for mergers and acquisitions (M&A) this year, accounting for more than 12 percent of those announced in Asia Pacific — the highest ratio since at least 1998, thanks to investments in Jio.
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