India’s billionaire landscape saw stark contrasts in 2025, with sharp wealth gains at the top even as several prominent names saw their fortunes shrink. Mukesh Ambani emerged as the biggest gainer, Gautam
Adani benefited from a revival in investor confidence, and Uday Kotak posted one of the strongest increases, while a handful of others faced notable erosion in net worth. Here is a snapshot of the top 10 wealth gainers of 2025 and the five biggest laggards whose fortunes declined.
According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani added a massive $16.50 billion to his net worth in 2025. The jump coincided with a strong rally in Reliance Industries—India’s largest company by market capitalisation—which delivered its best performance since 2020, with shares rising nearly 30 percent. Improved refining margins, telecom tariff hikes, resilient retail performance and multiple value-unlocking triggers together powered the sharp increase in Ambani’s wealth.
Close behind was Lakshmi Mittal, Chairman of global steel giant ArcelorMittal, the world’s second-largest steelmaker. Data shows that Mittal, currently ranked as the 70th richest person globally, saw his net worth rise by almost $12 billion in 2025, taking his total wealth to $31 billion.
Sunil Mittal, founder of Bharti Enterprises, which owns telecom major Airtel, also recorded a sharp increase in wealth. His net worth climbed by $6 billion to $29 billion in 2025. Airtel’s stock rose 31 percent year-to-date, while the company reported an 89 percent year-on-year surge in consolidated Q2 net profit to Rs 6,792 crore.
Gautam Adani, founder of the Adani Group, added $5.9 billion to his fortune in 2025, taking his net worth to $84 billion. A key catalyst for the rebound was Sebi’s clean chit in the Hindenburg case, which helped restore investor confidence. Adani continues to be India’s second-richest individual, behind Mukesh Ambani.
Kumar Mangalam Birla, Chairman of the Aditya Birla Group, with a net worth of $22 billion, saw his wealth grow by $4 billion during the year. Uday Kotak, founder of Kotak Mahindra Bank, added more than $2 billion to his fortune, taking his net worth to $16 billion and securing his place among the top 10 richest Indians.
Other names on the gainers’ list include Vikram Lal, founder of two-wheeler major Eicher Motors, and Nusli Wadia of the Wadia Group, which also owns FMCG heavyweight Britannia Industries. They are followed by Rahul Bhatia, co-founder of IndiGo, India’s largest airline by market share. Samir Mehta, chairman of the Torrent Group, also features on the list with a net worth of $7 billion.
On the other side of the spectrum, Shiv Nadar, founder of IT major HCL Tech, tops the list of wealth laggards. With a net worth of $39 billion, his fortune declined by nearly $4 billion in 2025, as per the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. The drop came amid heavy foreign investor selling in IT stocks, with HCL Tech shares down 15 percent during the year.
Azim Premji, Indian technology veteran and former chairman of Wipro, also saw his net worth shrink by $3 billion to $28 billion. Wipro’s stock has fallen 12 percent since the start of the year. In 2019, Premji handed over the role of executive chairman to his son Rishad Premji, while continuing as founder chairman.
K P Singh, founder of real estate major DLF, has a net worth of $14 billion, reflecting a decline of $3.38 billion in 2025. Shares of DLF have dropped 17 percent this year, weighing on his wealth.
Rounding out the laggards are Dilip Shanghvi, managing director of Sun Pharmaceuticals, whose net worth has fallen by over $4 billion to $25.5 billion, and Ravi Jaipuria, chairperson of Varun Beverages, whose wealth has declined to $13 billion, according to Bloomberg data.
