Mukesh Ambani continues to be India’s richest: Forbes

Reliance Industries Limited Chairman Mukesh Ambani has topped Forbes’ annual list of India’s 100 richest tycoons for 2016. With a net worth of $22.7 billion . Ambani has retained the number one spot for the ninth consecutive year. Sun Pharmaceuticals MD Dilip Shanghvi ($16.9 billion) and Hinduja brothers ($15.2 billion) ranked second and third respectively on the list.

Mukesh Ambani’s fortune increased from $18.9 billion last year as shares of his Reliance Industries rose 21% in the past 12 months. The company launched its 4G phone service, Jio, in September, sparking a price war in India’s hypercompetitive telecommunications market.

India’s richest pharmaceutical magnate, Dilip Shanghvi, remains at No. 2 with a net worth of $16.9 billion. His wealth fell by $1.1 billion along with a drop in the shares of his Sun Pharmaceutical Industries, the world’s fifth-largest generics maker. Earlier this year, Sun acquired 14 drugs from Novartis in Japan for $293 million, which will be distributed by Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma.

Tech magnate Azim Premji, who has led Wipro for five decades, slips one spot to   No. 4 with a net worth of $15 billion. Wipro, India’s third-largest outsourcer, reported a 6% fall in net earnings to $304 million in a recent quarter amid sluggish sales. To boost growth, the company has been on a buying spree and its most recent acquisition was HealthPlan Services, an insurance-technology firm based in Florida.