Meet the inheritors of India’s business empires
MUMBAI: As India’s richest men hit their 60s and beyond, succession questions about the next generation of tycoons will increasingly emerge in a country where business is still dominated by family-run enterprises.
Bloomberg has profiled some of these young guns of corporate India, selecting those who are 35 and under, based in India, have a public profile, and whose billionaire fathers are valued at more than $2 billion. Some have started their own ventures and avoided their fathers’ shadows. Others have pitched their tents inside the family enterprise. Here’s a look at them:
Isha and Akash Ambani
Isha and Akash are the 25-year-old, twin brother-and-sister scions of India’s richest man, Mukesh Ambani. They’re being groomed as the future of Reliance Industries Ltd, their father’s $42 billion conglomerate, as the company diversifies beyond energy and refineries into consumer-facing businesses.
Both were appointed to the boards of new venture Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd, as well as Reliance Retail Ventures Ltd, in 2014. Reliance Jio, which will start operations later this year, has received funding of more than $20 billion from the parent group and has plans to offer 4G mobile-phone services to 70% of India.