The Crossbill News Desk
A sharp downturn in market conditions and currency depreciation has taken a toll on India’s billionaire promoters, shrinking their ranks and eroding their combined wealth over the past year.
According to a Business Standard report, the country’s promoters’ club declined by 13.7% for the first time in three years, dropping from 204 individuals at the end of December 2024 to 176 in 2025, marking the steepest fall in both the number of billionaire promoters and their total wealth since 2012.
The combined wealth of the billionaire club fell 5% year-on-year to USD 984.2 billion at the end of December 2025, compared with USD 1,036.2 billion a year earlier.
The last time such a contraction was recorded was in 2022, when the number of billionaires dropped to 126 from 142 in 2021. The decline has come against the backdrop of a selloff in mid- and small-cap stocks that wiped out market capitalisation, while the depreciation of the rupee further reduced dollar-denominated wealth.
Although the benchmark BSE Sensex gained 9% during the year, the broader markets lagged behind, with the BSE Midcap index barely in the green and the BSE Smallcap index down 7% since December 2024. Over the same period, the rupee weakened from an average of 84.93 per dollar in December 2024 to 90.03 in December 2025.
The contraction has occurred despite a strong year for initial public offerings. As many as 128 companies went public in 2025, creating nine new billionaires.
Among them were the four founders and promoters of Billionbrains Garage Ventures, who together hold $3.1 billion. Physicswallah, Anthem Bioscience, Meesho and Lenskart Solutions also produced new billionaires.
At the top of the list, however, there was little change. Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani retained his position as India’s richest person, registering a 17.3% increase in net worth to USD 123.4 billion on December 29, 2025, from USD 105.2 billion a year earlier. Gautam Adani also held on to second place, with his wealth rising 2.3% from USD 100.5 billion in December 2024 to USD 102.8 billion in December 2025.
Bharti Airtel’s Sunil Bharti Mittal moved up from sixth to third place after his net worth rose 15.6% from USD 26.4 billion at the end of 2024 to USD 30.6 billion in 2025. Asian Paints promoters Malav Dani, Amrita Vakil and Manish Choksi also climbed the rankings, recording a 14.7% increase in wealth to reach the 10th spot from 13th a year earlier. JSW Group’s Sajjan Jindal, despite a 3.8% decline in his net worth, moved up to sixth place from seventh.
Several other tycoons slipped in the rankings but remained within the top 10. HCL Technologies’ Shiv Nadar fell from third to fourth place after his net worth dropped 19.8% to USD 29.8 billion from USD 37.3 billion in 2024. Sun Pharmaceutical Industries’ Dilip Shanghavi saw his wealth decline 14.4% to USD 25.3 billion, while Wipro’s Azim Premji recorded a 17.5% fall to USD 22.4 billion.
Avenue Supermarts promoter Radhakrishnan Damani and Bajaj Group’s Sanjiv and Rajiv Bajaj, meanwhile, held steady at their respective eighth and ninth positions, even as the broader billionaire club faced its steepest contraction in over a decade.
According to a Business Standard report, the country’s promoters’ club declined by 13.7% for the first time in three years, dropping from 204 individuals at the end of December 2024 to 176 in 2025, marking the steepest fall in both the number of billionaire promoters and their total wealth since 2012.
The combined wealth of the billionaire club fell 5% year-on-year to USD 984.2 billion at the end of December 2025, compared with USD 1,036.2 billion a year earlier.
The last time such a contraction was recorded was in 2022, when the number of billionaires dropped to 126 from 142 in 2021. The decline has come against the backdrop of a selloff in mid- and small-cap stocks that wiped out market capitalisation, while the depreciation of the rupee further reduced dollar-denominated wealth.
Although the benchmark BSE Sensex gained 9% during the year, the broader markets lagged behind, with the BSE Midcap index barely in the green and the BSE Smallcap index down 7% since December 2024. Over the same period, the rupee weakened from an average of 84.93 per dollar in December 2024 to 90.03 in December 2025.
The contraction has occurred despite a strong year for initial public offerings. As many as 128 companies went public in 2025, creating nine new billionaires.
Among them were the four founders and promoters of Billionbrains Garage Ventures, who together hold $3.1 billion. Physicswallah, Anthem Bioscience, Meesho and Lenskart Solutions also produced new billionaires.
At the top of the list, however, there was little change. Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani retained his position as India’s richest person, registering a 17.3% increase in net worth to USD 123.4 billion on December 29, 2025, from USD 105.2 billion a year earlier. Gautam Adani also held on to second place, with his wealth rising 2.3% from USD 100.5 billion in December 2024 to USD 102.8 billion in December 2025.
Bharti Airtel’s Sunil Bharti Mittal moved up from sixth to third place after his net worth rose 15.6% from USD 26.4 billion at the end of 2024 to USD 30.6 billion in 2025. Asian Paints promoters Malav Dani, Amrita Vakil and Manish Choksi also climbed the rankings, recording a 14.7% increase in wealth to reach the 10th spot from 13th a year earlier. JSW Group’s Sajjan Jindal, despite a 3.8% decline in his net worth, moved up to sixth place from seventh.
Several other tycoons slipped in the rankings but remained within the top 10. HCL Technologies’ Shiv Nadar fell from third to fourth place after his net worth dropped 19.8% to USD 29.8 billion from USD 37.3 billion in 2024. Sun Pharmaceutical Industries’ Dilip Shanghavi saw his wealth decline 14.4% to USD 25.3 billion, while Wipro’s Azim Premji recorded a 17.5% fall to USD 22.4 billion.
Avenue Supermarts promoter Radhakrishnan Damani and Bajaj Group’s Sanjiv and Rajiv Bajaj, meanwhile, held steady at their respective eighth and ninth positions, even as the broader billionaire club faced its steepest contraction in over a decade.
Comments (0)
Leave a Comment