Gautam Adani is richest in Asia with net worth at $89.2 billion: Forbes

New Delhi: Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani’s net worth rose to $89.2 billion, ranking him ahead of Reliance Industries’ Mukesh Ambani ($88 billion) and SoftBank’s Masayoshi Son ($87 billion), who held the title of Asia’s richest before shares of the Japanese investment firm fell on Thursday, according to Forbes’ Real-Time Billionaires list.

Gautam Adani, on the other hand, registered an increase in net worth after a broader stock surge across companies under the umbrella of his Adani Group, including Adani Power (up 1.1 per cent), Adani Ports (1.9 per cent), Adani Enterprises (2.3 per cent), Adani Green Energy (6.9 per cent), and Adani Energy Solutions (3.8 per cent).

The combined market value across six Adani Group companies as of Friday stood at about $191 billion. The break-up includes Adani Power at $47.2 billion, followed by Adani Ports ($44.2 billion), Adani Enterprises ($44 billion), Adani Green Energy ($26.4 billion), Adani Energy Solutions ($19.9 billion) and Adani Total Gas ($8.8 billion).

Gautam Adani’s fortune has increased by nearly $10 billion since the Justice Department dismissed fraud charges against the Adani Group last month, following allegations the conglomerate participated in a $250 million bribery scheme over solar energy supply contracts (Adani and his co-executives denied the claims), the Forbes report observes.

His return as the wealthiest person in Asia follows a decline in value in recent years across his companies amid various allegations. US short-seller Hindenburg Research accused Adani of stock manipulation and widespread fraud in 2023. However, the claims were rejected by Indian regulators last year, who said the allegations were “not established”. He had also faced allegations in the US, which have now been settled.

The billionaire industrialist, in his annual letter to shareholders last month, said that the Adani Group has moved beyond its US legal challenges and is accelerating investments across energy, transport, logistics and digital infrastructure, positioning itself to benefit from rising demand for artificial intelligence-led growth.

He described the group’s recent Rs 24,930 crore rights issue in flagship firm, Adani Enterprises, as a vote of confidence from investors at a time when the conglomerate faced questions over governance and regulatory issues.

The Adani Group has faced scrutiny from US authorities over bribery allegations linked to its renewable energy business, charges the conglomerate has denied. While the US Securities and Exchange Commission has reached a settlement with the Adani Group on the issue, the US Department of Justice has moved to drop all charges against the founder and others.

IANS