Asians increase family fortunes

The Asian Rich List showcases the inspiring stories of prominent businessmen and women who have broken through glass ceilings to dominate across sectors.

• SARWAR ALAM
• 15 November, 2024

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By: SARWAR ALAM

BRITISH ASIAN business leaders continued to overcome economic challenges at home and abroad as they increased their wealth in the past year by an incredible £6.22 billion, analysis by the Asian Rich List 2025 revealed.

Published by Eastern Eye, the list profiles the 101 richest Asians in Britain. It was set to be released on Friday (15) evening at the annual Asian Business Awards, now in its 26th year.

The Asian Rich List showcases the inspiring stories of prominent businessmen and women who have broken through glass ceilings to dominate across sectors. It has seen them accumulate a combined wealth of £126bn – a 5.2 per cent increase on last year.

The number of billionaires on the list has gone up from 16 to 17, with the Hinduja family once again topping the ranking. Their wealth is estimated to be £34.5bn, up by £1bn from the previous year.

The Hinduja Group is led by Gopichand, 83, who took over the reins after the death of his older brother Srichand at the age of 87 in May 2023. Gopi, or GP, as he is known, is supported by his brothers Prakash, 79, who divides his time between Geneva and Monaco, and Ashok, the youngest at 74, who lives in Mumbai.

The conglomerate has interests in automotive manufacturing, oil, IT, finance, real estate and media. With businesses in 50 countries, the group employs almost 200,000 worldwide.

Last year, the Hindujas completed a sevenyear £1.3bn refurbishment of the Old War Office (OWO) in Whitehall, London, renaming it the OWO Raffles hotel and residential complex. With its marble staircases, floors and chandeliers, it features 120 guest rooms and suites, plus 85 luxurious apartments.

Among the group’s work this year was an agreement with leading hospitals and academic institutions in the UK which will allow the latest advances in medical science to be shared with India.

In addition, there will be scholarships for Indian PhD and master’s students to come to London to pursue research in healthcare engineering. With such a massive empire to run, the family is banking on the skills of the next generation of Hindujas. They include Gopi’s two sons, Sanjay, 60, and Dheeraj, 52; Prakash also has two sons – Ajay, 56, and Ramkrishan, 53; and Ashok’s son, Shom, 31.

Sanjay is chairman of Gulf Oil International, while Dheeraj is chairman of Ashok Leyland, which Gopi describes as the family’s “flagship”

Gopi reflected on his legacy and how the values he and his brothers inherited from their father, Parmanand Deepchand Hinduja (1900-1971), could be passed on to his sons and subsequent generations.

“I love the parivar,” Gopi told the Asian Rich List, using the Hindi word for family. “I love the joint family. I would love all members of the family to stay united. I want to create a legacy in the world which recognises that the joint family is the real strength of human beings.

“Everyone is born and then finally they are gone. There is nobody permanent. But there is strength in the joint family.

“This is not easy, because people have their own minds. One should have the spirit of acceptance when things go wrong, to have silence and forgive and forget. Because if you don’t forgive and forget, it becomes a big war and that does not help anyone.”

The top nine names on the list remain the same as last year, with all either maintaining or increasing their wealth – apart from steel magnates Lakshmi Mittal and his son Aditya, who saw a slight drop of £100 million. However, they stayed second with a valuation of £12.8bn.

In third place is Mittal’s brother-in-law and global plastics supremo, Sri Prakash Lohia, with 10.2bn – his wife Seema is Mittal’s sister.

Nirmal Sethia, who came in at fourth with £6.7bn, has interests across several sectors, including sugar refining, security printing, gold mining and investment banking. However, he is perhaps best known for his love of tea and for founding Newby Teas, which he calls “the world’s finest tea company”.

Industrialist Anil Agarwal had a remarkable year on the business front, with an increase of £600m. He is ranked fifth on the list, with a personal fortune of £5.8bn.

It has been, however, a difficult time in his personal life with the death of his mother. Agarwal’s affection for her is reflected in his global mining empire, Vedanta, which he transformed from a tiny scrap metal business and named after her, Vedvati Agarwal.

“I will feel incomplete without my mother. Her absence cannot be filled in any way in life,” wrote Agarwal, announcing her passing.

Brothers Mohsin and Zuber Issa are ranked sixth, with a fortune of £4.9bn, but the pair went their separate ways in June after Zuber announced he was selling his stake in supermarket Asda to TDR Capital, the private equity giant the pair partnered with to secure Asda.

Though it is believed they have divided the control of their assets, they are still involved in a number of business interests.

The top 10 is completed by other billionaires, who include B&M store’s former owners Simon, Bobby and Robin Arora (£3.2bn); Bestway wholesalers and pharmacy owners, father and son Sir Anwar and Dawood Pervez (£2.7bn); investors Cyrus Vandrevala and his wife Priya (£2.5bn); and a new entrant in 10th position – brothers Ramesh, Rajni and Bhupendra Kansagra.

With businesses in the continent of Africa and interests in petroleum, gas production, mining, shipping and hospitality, the siblings had a remarkable year with a £500m increase in wealth.

Hotelier Jasminder Singh was pushed to 11th place at £1.6bn. He also had a strong year in which his Edwardian Group London completed a landmark transaction with the US-based private equity firm Starwood Capital Group, selling 10 Radisson Blu Edwardian properties in London with a total of 2,053 rooms. The deal was estimated to be worth $1bn (£787m). Singh retains three flagship hotels – the May Fair, the Londoner and the E d w a r d i a n Manchester.

The sole new billionaire in this year’s list came in the form of Ranjit Singh Boparan (at 12), whose valuation through his food business has risen from £920m to £1.55bn, an increase of £630m.

There are three entries who missed billionaire status by fewer than £100m, including former prime minister Rishi Sunak and his wife, Akshata Murty (19), who saw their net worth rise by £200m from £720m to £920m, largely due to the increase in the value of shares held in Infosys, the Indian IT giant founded by Akshata’s father, NR Narayana Murthy.

Among the notable risers in the list is Tarsem Singh Dhaliwal (28), who used to be a minority shareholder in Iceland Foods. He now owns nearly half the company, thereby pushing his value from £120m to £680m, an increase of £560m.

The Asian Rich List is the definitive recognition of British Asian success with entries becoming more competitive each year. The continued success of Asian entrepreneurs has seen the minimum entry point raised by £10m this year to £135m. The two new entrants on this year’s list are Sanjay and Kapil Wadhwani at joint 89 (£155m) and Manish Gudka at 97 (£145m) position.

The Wadhwani family are pioneers of supplying ethnic foods in Britain, running a successful wholesale distribution business.

Gudka’s Z Hotels has established a reputation for providing convenient and stylish accommodation for both business and leisure travellers at its sites across London and three additional locations in Glasgow, Bath, and Liverpool.

Shailesh Solanki, executive editor of the Asian Media Group (AMG) and publisher of the Asian Rich List, said: “Each year, Asian entrepreneurs continue to show the talent, resilience and work ethic that makes them among the very best business minds this country has to offer. They have had an incredible impact in every conceivable sector in the UK.

“The stories of building empires from humble beginnings, passing them onto the next generation and leaving lasting legacies, is something that is admired around the world.

“Compiling the Asian Rich List is a monumental task, and it took more than six months to produce. The extensive research and exclusive interviews give readers a unique insight to the lives of the 101 wealthiest Asians.”

Copies of the Asian Rich List 2025 are available to buy. Contact Saurin Shah via email [email protected] or call 020 7654 7737 for details.

Full coverage of the Asian Business Awards will be published in Eastern Eye next Friday (22).