South Asian billionaires surge on Forbes’ 2025 rankings

From high-tech startups born in garages to sprawling oil refineries, South Asian entrepreneurs have built fortunes that now dominate a significant portion of Forbes' 2025 billionaire rankings, with a staggering 200+ business leaders from the region claiming spots on the global list.

India alone accounts for a vast majority of these billionaires, making it the third-largest country for the ultra-wealthy behind the United States and China. Fifteen of these South Asian tycoons have secured positions among the world's 200 wealthiest individuals.

Mukesh Ambani leads South Asian billionaires at No. 18 globally with a fortune of $92.5 billion. The 67-year-old chairs and runs $120 billion (revenue) Reliance Industries, which has interests in petrochemicals, oil and gas, telecom, retail, media and financial services. Reliance's telecom unit Jio has 490 million subscribers, and Ambani has begun expanding into green energy with plans to invest $80 billion over the next 10-15 years.

Gautam Adani follows at No. 28 with $56.3 billion. The infrastructure magnate chairs the Ahmedabad-headquartered Adani Group with interests in ports, airports, power generation and transmission, and green energy.

Indian billionaire Gautam Adani speaks during an interview with Reuters at his office in the western Indian city of Ahmedabad April 2, 2014.Reuters

Adani controls Mundra Port, India's largest, and is the country's biggest airport operator. His wealth fluctuated dramatically after accusations from U.S. firm Hindenburg Research in 2023, but his companies' shares have since recovered substantially following a favorable ruling by India's Supreme Court.

Savitri Jindal, 75, ranks No. 48 with $35.5 billion, making her the highest-ranked woman from the region. She chairs Jindal Group, whose interests include steel, power, cement and infrastructure. Following her husband O.P. Jindal's death in a 2005 helicopter crash, their sprawling empire was divided among their four sons, who now independently manage various segments of the business.

Tech pioneer Shiv Nadar, 79, holds the No. 51 spot with $34.5 billion. The self-made entrepreneur cofounded HCL in a garage in 1976 to make calculators and microprocessors. Today, his $13.4 billion (revenue) HCL Technologies employs more than 220,000 people across 60 countries. In 2020, he stepped down as chairman, handing over leadership to his daughter, Roshni Nadar Malhotra.

Pharmaceutical tycoon Dilip Shanghvi ranks No. 79 with $24.9 billion. Starting Sun Pharmaceutical Industries in 1983 with just $200 borrowed from his father, the 69-year-old has grown it into India's most valuable listed pharmaceutical company. Two-thirds of the company's $5.3 billion annual revenue comes from overseas markets.

Among the handful of non-Indian South Asians on the list, Pakistani-born American Shahid Khan appears at No. 175 with $13.4 billion. The Flex-N-Gate auto parts magnate arrived in the United States at 16 with only $500, working as a dishwasher while studying engineering.

Pakistani-born American billionaire Shahid Khan.Wikimedia

His company now has 76 plants worldwide and over 27,000 employees. Beyond manufacturing, Khan owns the NFL's Jacksonville Jaguars, the UK's Fulham football club, and co-founded All Elite Wrestling with his son.

The 2025 Forbes list includes a record 3,028 billionaires worldwide, with combined wealth reaching $16.1 trillion — surpassing the GDP of every nation except the United States and China.

The billionaires on the 2025 list, representing less than 0.000035% of the world's population, now control more than 3% of global wealth.