MUMBAI: The wealth of Indian billionaires surged 42% to over $905 billion during the last financial year, positioning it as the third largest base behind the US and China, a report by Swiss bank UBS said. In contrast, in China, where the Xi Jinping regime has gone after businesses, billionaires saw an erosion in their net worth.
The UBS Billionaire Ambitions Report said during the last 10 years, the number of Indian billionaires more than doubled to 185, with their combined wealth trebled (rose 263%) at the end of April 2024. Family-led businesses are playing a pivotal role in India’s economic rise. As India breaks into the top tier of global economies, it boasts one of the highest numbers of publicly listed family-owned businesses, many spanning generations, the report said. This phenomenon has contributed significantly to the surge in Indian billionaires over the past decade.
Family businesses are spread across a diverse range of sectors- from established conglomerates to new-economy ventures in pharmaceuticals, education technology, financial technology, and food delivery.
While global billionaire wealth growth has slowed, India remains an exception. This is attributed to the continued dynamism of Indian entrepreneurs and the country’s favourable economic environment.
“It’s been a time of exceptional economic growth. During two completed terms in office, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s National Democratic Alliance government introduced structural reforms that have helped propel the economy to the fifth biggest in the world,” the report said.
This trend is expected to continue, fuelled by rising urbanisation, digitalisation, a growing manufacturing sector, and the ongoing energy transition. India could witness an explosion in billionaire entrepreneurs over the next decade, mirroring China’s trajectory until 2020. In recent years, there has also been debate in the country over growing economic disparity between the rich and the poor.
Between 2015 and 2024, global billionaire wealth surged by 121% to $14 trillion, outpacing the 73% gain in the MSCI AC World Index. The number of billionaires grew from 1,757 to 2,682, peaking at 2,686 in 2021. However, growth has stalled since 2020, with a 1% annual increase in billionaire wealth globally, down from a 10% rate between 2015 and 2020.
Regional trends show continued expansion in the US, EMEA, and parts of Asia, particularly India, even as Chinese billionaire wealth fell 16% from its 2020 peak of $2.1 trillion.
Tech billionaires have led the wealth accumulation, tripling their holdings from $788.9 billion in 2015 to $2.4 trillion in 2024, driven by advancements in generative AI, cybersecurity, fintech, and robotics. Industrials billionaires followed, with wealth rising from $480.4 billion to $1.3 trillion due to investments in green technology and reshoring initiatives. In contrast, real estate billionaires lagged, impacted by China’s property correction, the pandemic’s effects on commercial real estate, and rising interest rates in the US and Europe.
