Sep 16, 2022 - Economy & Business

India's richest man surpasses Bezos as world's second richest person

Gautam Adani speaking in Kolkata, India, in April 2022.

Gautam Adani speaking in Kolkata, India, in April 2022. Photo: Debajyoti Chakraborty/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Gautam Adani, founder and chairperson of the Indian conglomerate Adani Group. surpassed Jeff Bezos as the world's second richest person on Friday, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

Why it matters: Adani started the year at the 14th spot on the index before accumulating a $146.9 billion fortune that only lags behind Elon Musk's current worth of about $260 billion.

  • Bezos’s fall to third with a net worth of around $145.8 billion as of Friday morning was primarily the result of a major recent tech selloff.

The big picture: Adani Group surged in valued this week, hitting a record high, according to Bloomberg.

  • The conglomerate is India's largest port and airport operator, thermal coal producer and largest coal trader.

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