Our Bureau
Mumbai
Mukesh Ambani, chairman and managing director of Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL), has overtaken ByteDance co-founder Zhang Yiming to become Asia’s richest person, with his net worth rising to $88.8 billion, according to Forbes’ Real-Time Billionaires list. The jump followed a nearly 12% rise in Reliance shares on Monday, which added more than $19 billion to the company’s market value.
Ambani’s wealth increased by 10.5% to $88.8 billion, placing him 22nd on the global list, while Zhang ranked 25th with an estimated fortune of $84 billion. Adani Group chairman Gautam Adani was placed 26th, with a net worth of $80.1 billion.
The rally in Reliance shares came after the company reported record financial results for the July-September quarter. Its consolidated revenue rose 28% year-on-year to Rs 3.62 lakh crore, while earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) increased 24% to Rs 62,409 crore. Net profit climbed 34% to Rs 29,550 crore, marking a quarterly record, according to the company’s results.
The stock market gains came days after Jio Platforms, Reliance’s digital services and telecom arm, made its trading debut on the National Stock Exchange on October 28. The shares rose 27% on the first day. The company’s $3.2-billion initial public offering was the largest in India’s history, and Reliance holds about 66% of the platform.
Reliance operates across energy, petrochemicals, retail, telecom and digital services. Its latest performance and Jio’s listing have strengthened investor confidence, helping lift the group’s market value and Ambani’s position on the global wealth rankings. The rankings can shift as share prices and private-company valuations change daily.