Indian industrialists Mukesh Ambani and Gautam Adani have been the biggest losers in wealth on the world's richest list in 2023 so far. According to the data available on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Adani's wealth has eroded by more than $78 billion in year-to-date terms. On the other hand, Mukesh Ambani's wealth declined by more than $5 billion.
Earlier this month, Mukesh Ambani surpassed Gautam Adani to take over as the richest Indian in the world. According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Mukesh Ambani's net worth is $81.5 billion. As of February 23, 2023, he sits in the 12th spot on the world's top billionaires list. On the other hand, Gautam Adani's wealth stands at $42.7 billion; he has slipped to the 29th spot in the index, falling from the ranks of the world's second richest last year. Significantly, he is no longer among the top 25 billionaires on the list.
Shares of Adani Group companies have been under pressure since the January 24 report by Hindenburg. Notably, the report made allegations of accounting irregularities in the books of Adani Group companies.
However, the allegations were denied as being "baseless" by the group. Nonetheless, the report induced a sharp sell-off in the group's shares. Consequently, Gautam Adani has lost a significant portion of his wealth.
Adani group runs the largest port in India. It also runs thermal power plants and is the country's largest coal trader. It has business interests across the infrastructure spectrum. The Adani group has been diversifying its business interests, and last year, it bought cement firms ACC and Ambuja Cements from Switzerland's Holcim for $10.5 billion.
