Fortune has shone bright on some, and dimmed on others
THE BIGGEST GAINERS
Rajendra Agarwal, Macleods Pharmaceuticals
+$740 mln (+67.27%)
Rank 58; Up 32 places
The highest gainer on the 2015 Forbes India Rich List is the low-profile doctor Rajendra Agarwal, who has risen the most, both in terms of rank (he was No. 90 last year) and the percentage rise in wealth (which totalled $1.1 billion in 2014). His fortune has been fuelled by strong business growth led by exports. He founded the privately held Macleods Pharmaceuticals in 1986 with a focus on anti-tuberculosis and anti-infective drugs. The drug company has since expanded into high growth areas of diabetes, orthopaedics, gynaecology and cardiovascular and respiratory diseases. Macleods has a presence across 80 countries, where it has joint ventures, licensing agreements, contract manufacturing and tenders to operate its business models. In 2015, it was recognised by industry consultancy firm IMS Health as among the fast growing pharmaceutical firms in India (through total sales audit).
THE BIGGEST LOSERS
Anil Ambani
-$3.4 bln (-53.97%)
Rank 29, Down 16 places
Anil Ambani’s net worth more than halved this year, pushing him down the 2015 Forbes India Rich List. The shares of most of his listed entities fell at the BSE, impacted by weak economic sentiment and delays in project execution: Flagship Reliance Communications slid 42 percent, financial services firm Reliance Capital fell 39 percent and that of Reliance Infrastructure halved. But he has been busy restructuring some businesses and entering fresh deals. He sold his Big Cinemas multiplex business to rival Carnival Cinemas in December last year for a reported Rs 700 crore and is looking to sell part of Reliance Communications’ tower business to prune its $5.8 billion debt, moves that could see an enhancement in his fortunes in the future.
(This story appears in the 29 October, 2015 issue of Forbes India. To visit our Archives, click here.)