Naresh Trehan, the founder of the Medanta hospital chain
The Forbes World's Billionaires List 2024 is out, and it features 200 Indians, up from 169 last year. The total wealth of Indians on the prestigious list stands at a staggering $954 billion. The data indicate a massive 41% spike from the previous year's $675 billion of 169 Indian billionaires who made it to the list.
According to Forbes World's Billionaires List 2024, Mukesh Ambani's net worth soared to $116 billion from $83 billion in 2023. It makes him the sole Asian member of the prestigious $100 billion club. Following Mr Ambani, Gautam Adani holds the second position as India's richest man, with a net worth of $84 billion. Savitri Jindal, India's richest woman, maintains her position with a net worth of $33.5 billion.
In 2024, we also saw some Indian billionaires making their debut on the esteemed list. Here are some of them:
Naresh Trehan (net worth - $1.4 billion)
Naresh Trehan is the founder of the Medanta hospital chain, which he started in 2007 with one hospital in Delhi. He is the chairman, managing director, and chief cardiac surgeon at Medanta, overseeing a wide range of specialised services, including cardiology, neurology, and oncology, and over 30 other specialities. Medanta hospitals have expanded to five hospitals across North India, with more than 2,700 hospital beds.
Ramesh Kunhikannan (net worth - $1.2 billion)
Ramesh Kunhikannan is the founder and managing director of Kaynes Technology, an electronics manufacturer based in Mysore. Kaynes was established in 1989 and specialises in assembling printed circuit boards and operates eight factories across India. Kaynes supplies to 350 clients globally in the automotive, aerospace, and medical industries.
Renuka Jagtiani (net worth - $4.8 billion)
Renuka Jagtiani is the chairperson and CEO of Landmark Group, a multinational consumer conglomerate in Dubai founded by her husband, Micky Jagtiani, who died in May 2023. Landmark Group employs over 50,000 people under her guidance.
Nikhil Merchant (net worth - $1 billion)
Nikhil Merchant is the managing director of Swan Energy, a company involved in diverse sectors such as oil and gas exploration, petrochemicals trading, textiles, and real estate. He acquired Swan Energy, formerly known as Swan Mills, in 1992. In 2021, he won the bid to take over Reliance Naval Engineering, a shipyard previously owned by billionaire Anil Ambani.
Vijay Agarwal (net worth - $1 billion)
Vijay Agarwal founded Action Construction Equipment, a construction equipment manufacturing company, in 1995. He serves as the chairman and managing director of the company and leads the production of hydraulic mobile cranes, tower cranes, loaders, tractors, and agri-harvesters. The company markets its construction equipment under the brand name Ace.