Gautam Adani was indeed the richest man in Asia. He is now the third richest person in the world. He has passed Louis Vuitton Chairman Bernard Arnault and is the first Asian person to take that spot, according to Bloomberg and its Billionaires Index. The tracker shows that Adani, who heads one of the largest conglomerates in India, is now believed to be worth about $137 billion.
This week, his capital rose to succeed Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, whose fortunes are estimated at $251 billion and $153 billion, respectively.
Like other billionaires around the world, Adani has seen his fortune skyrocket during the pandemic. The founder of the Adani Group controls companies ranging from ports and aviation to solar and coal.
His fortune has grown exponentially since the start of the global health crisis as investors are betting on his ability to grow his business in sectors that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has identified as a development priority. Adani has also benefited from a slight increase in coal use, which has fueled its rally in recent months, according to Bloomberg.
Adani met fellow Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani in February to become the richest person in the region. Its rise in the global wealth rankings is due to some 1% members of the world giving away more of their wealth.
Bill Gates
In July, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates announced that he would spend $20 billion on the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation grant, reiterating his intention to “get off the list of the world’s richest people”. Gates is currently the fifth richest person in the world, according to the Bloomberg Index, with a net worth of $117 billion.
In India, Adani has also proven himself in other ways. Last week, he caused an uproar when he announced a hostile takeover attempt of the influential television station, New Delhi Television (NDTV). The deal is being pursued by AMG Media Networks, which is part of the Adani conglomerate. The move also sparked turmoil over the future editorial freedom of NDTV, one of the country’s most respected news networks.
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