The Indian coal mining tycoon Gautam Adani has become Asia’s richest person, according to figures from Forbes and Bloomberg.
Adani has overtaken fellow countryman Mukesh Ambani to enter the top 10 of the world’s richest people. The 59-year-old founder of Adani Group controls companies ranging from ports and aerospace to thermal energy and coal, and now has a net worth of $88.5 billion.
Like other billionaires around the world, data showed that Adani has seen his wealth skyrocket during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Adani Group, founded in 1988, has grown along with Narendra Modi’s political stature. The relationship between the two men was forged more than a decade ago in Gujarat, the laboratory of Hindutva nationalism. Opponents of Narendra Modi say Adani’s success is largely due to his closeness to Modi and his propensity to align his investments with Modi’s policy objectives.
Adani Group controls the port of Mundra, India’s largest, in Gujarat and it also owns 74% of Mumbai international airport.
