Mukesh Ambani and Gautam Adani, once centibillionaires are facing immense decline in their personal wealth. Both Ambani and Adani have tumbled out of the elite centibillionaires club, that is, people with fortunes above $100 billion, as reported by Bloomberg. The energy and retail segments of Ambani’s Reliance conglomerate are underperforming, while Adani’s US Department of Justice probe over alleged bribery adds to the fallout of the business from previous fraud accusations. The situation is making it harder for the two businessmen to win profitable deals or contracts. Both tycoons are losing investor’s confidence in the market, mounting additional challenges.
According to the Bloomberg Billionaire Index (BBI), Mukesh Ambani’s wealth was nearly $120.8 billion in the month of July but it fell to around $96.7 billion as of December. This has led to investors worrying about the growing debt due to a fall in stock prices. To date, Ambani’s strategy has been increasing its focus on digital platforms, retail brands, and renewable energy to boost productivity. According to equity market strategists, Reliance conglomerate remains a strong wealth producer with its subsidiaries having great value. The pressure on the oil industry is said to be the reason for the underperforming stock prices.
The issue has magnified even more for Adani. A recent investigation by the US Department of Justice (DoJ) revealed cases of bribery and other allegations about Adani’s business. According to the BBI, the net worth of this business tycoon dropped from $122.3 billion in June to $82.1 billion in November. The reason behind such a massive drop in wealth is attributed to the efforts taken to strengthen finances after Hindenburg’s accusations. The vast business empire of Adani has thus suffered from multiple headwinds this year.
Ambanis has come at number eight among the world’s richest families, while Adani was excluded from the list due to the exclusion of first-generation rich and single-heir fortunes. Such an incident may pose a danger to India’s telecom companies due to uncertainty brought on by the impending government of the US, Donald Trump, and the possibility of Elon Musk entering the Indian satellite broadband market.
