The Hurun Global Rich List 2026 released Saturday revealed that India now has 308 billionaires, up by 24 compared to last year. India now has the third largest number of billionaires, behind only China and the United States. India added 57 new billionaires during the year, but also saw 27 individuals drop out of the list.
Total wealth held by Indian billionaires rose 10 per cent year-on-year to ₹112.6 trillion, with 199 individuals recording an increase in their fortunes. Around 109 saw their wealth either decline or remain unchanged. Seven per cent of Indian billionaires were women. India’s billionaire class is expanding beyond traditional sectors, according to Hurun Research Institute.
Mukesh Ambani, chairman of Reliance Industries, retained his position as both India and Asia’s richest person, with a net worth of ₹9.8 trillion ($110 billion). This marks a 9% increase over the year.
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Gautam Adani, who heads the conglomerate Adani group, remained the second richest Indian despite a 14% decline in wealth, which took his net worth down to ₹7.5 trillion ($81 billion).
Roshni Nadar Malhotra, chairperson of HCL Technologies, was third with a wealth of ₹3.2 trillion ($35 billion). She remained the only woman among the top ten richest in India.
The largest number of billionaires come from the healthcare sector, with 53 new entrants in the list. Industrial products followed with 36 new names, while consumer goods accounted for 31 new billionaires.
While it had fewer entrants, the energy sector had the largest wealth concentration, generating ₹18.3 trillion ($200 billion) from just eight billionaires, and accounting for about 16% of India’s cumulative billionaire wealth.
Cyrus S. Poonawalla, founder and chairman of Pune-based Serum Institute of India gained the largest amount of wealth adding nearly ₹0.91 trillion (nearly $9.88 billion) during the year.
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Mumbai remains India’s billionaire capital, with 95 billionaires. However, it lost its status as Asia’s billionaire capital to Shenzhen, which now hosts 133 billionaires. Mumbai also recorded 15 new entrants, surpassing New York’s 14 and London’s nine additions. Across cities, New York topped the list globally with 146 billionaires, followed by Shanghai (120), Beijing (107), and London (102).
Most of India’s billionaires are older individuals with an average age of 67, compared with the global average of 65. The country’s youngest billionaire is Ritesh Agarwal, founder of Oyo, at the age of 32. The Hurun report noted that India’s expanding billionaire base reflects increasing entrepreneurial activity and growing global ambitions among Indian business leaders.