India’s billionaire wealth rankings in 2025 reflected sharp divergence, with massive gains concentrated at the very top even as several well-known tycoons saw their fortunes erode. While strong stock market rallies, sector-specific tailwinds and regulatory clarity lifted some of the country’s richest individuals, weak equity performance in IT, pharma and real estate weighed heavily on others.
Data from the Bloomberg Billionaires Index shows that Mukesh Ambani, chairman of Reliance Industries, emerged as the single biggest wealth gainer this year. His net worth jumped by $16.50 billion, driven by a nearly 30 percent rally in Reliance shares — the company’s best performance since 2020. Improved refining margins, tariff hikes in telecom, steady retail growth and expectations of value unlocking across businesses contributed to the surge.
Biggest wealth gainers of 2025
Lakshmi Mittal followed closely, with the ArcelorMittal chairman adding almost $12 billion to his fortune, taking his net worth to $31 billion. Sunil Mittal of Bharti Enterprises also had a strong year, with wealth rising by $6 billion to $29 billion as Airtel shares climbed 31 percent year-to-date and profits surged sharply.
Gautam Adani added $5.9 billion to his net worth, which now stands at $84 billion, after investor confidence improved following Sebi’s clean chit in the Hindenburg matter. Kumar Mangalam Birla saw his wealth grow by $4 billion to $22 billion, while Uday Kotak added over $2 billion, taking his net worth to $16 billion and placing him firmly among India’s top 10 richest individuals.
Other notable gainers include Eicher Motors founder Vikram Lal, Wadia Group patriarch Nusli Wadia, IndiGo co-founder Rahul Bhatia, and Torrent Group chairman Samir Mehta, whose wealth stands at $7 billion.
Billionaires who lost wealth this year
On the flip side, Shiv Nadar of HCL Tech recorded the steepest decline among Indian billionaires. His net worth fell by nearly $4 billion to $39 billion, as IT stocks faced sustained foreign selling and HCL Tech shares slid 15 percent this year.
Azim Premji also saw a $3 billion erosion in wealth, with his net worth slipping to $28 billion amid a 12 percent fall in Wipro shares. Real estate veteran K P Singh’s fortune declined by $3.38 billion to $14 billion, reflecting a 17 percent drop in DLF stock.
Dilip Shanghvi of Sun Pharmaceuticals lost over $4 billion, bringing his net worth down to $25.5 billion, while Varun Beverages chairperson Ravi Jaipuria’s wealth slipped to $13 billion.