Gautam Adani reclaims Asia’s richest person title

Based on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, billionaire Gautam Adani has surpassed Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani to reclaim the title of richest person in Asia.

As of 6:00pm yesterday, Adani, the chairman of Adani Group, holds the 11th position on the index with a net worth of $111 billion, compared to Ambani’s $109 billion.

One of the main reasons why Adani passed Ambani was the notable increase in the stocks of the Adani Group. All Adani Group companies saw a spike in share prices on Friday as a result of a Jefferies report outlining the group’s ambitious expansion plans, which include spending $90 billion on capital projects over the next ten years, reports NDTV.

The Adani Group’s stocks saw a positive reaction from the market, increasing investor wealth by Rs 1.23 lakh crore and raising their total market capitalisation to Rs 17.94 lakh crore intraday. By the close of trading, the market capitalisation had settled at Rs 17.51 lakh crore, with an addition of Rs 84,064 crore in value.

Gautam Adani expressed hope for the Adani Group’s future earlier this week, highlighting that the company’s best days are still ahead after a strong recovery from a dual attack by US short-seller Hindenburg. Adani outlined the difficulties the group encountered in the previous year’s annual report, emphasising that conquering these obstacles had fortified their resolve and served as an inspiration from India’s tenacity, the report said.

“The road ahead is paved with extraordinary possibilities, and I can promise you that the Adani Group today is stronger than it has ever been,” he said.

The Bloomberg Billionaires Index is a daily ranking of the world’s wealthiest individuals, updated at the close of each trading day in New York.