Get to know the who's who of Asia's billionaires as we reveal the top 10 richest in Asia, according to the World’s Billionaires List 2021
Forbes has unveiled the 2021 edition of the World’s Billionaires List. Even after a year of the world living through a global pandemic, it’s clear that the rich just keep getting richer, with Forbes stating, “The number of billionaires on Forbes’ 35th annual list of the world’s wealthiest exploded to an unprecedented 2,755—660 more than a year ago. Of those, a record high 493 were new to the list—roughly one every 17 hours, including 210 from China and Hong Kong.”
The top spot was unsurprisingly taken by Jeff Bezos, with a fortune of US$177 billion, closely followed by Elon Musk, with a net worth of US$151 billion, and Bernard Arnault and family, with US$150 billion.
And though the US has the most billionaires, Forbes notes that “the U.S. still has the most, with 724, followed by China (including Hong Kong and Macao) with 698.”
Taking the number 10 spot is Mukesh Ambani, India’s richest man, who also has the largest fortune in Asia, with $84.5 billion. Other high profile Asian billionaires on the list include China’s Zhong Shanshan and Ma Huateng, along with Hong Kong’s own Li Ka-Shing, who was ranked as the 43rd richest in the world, and 12th overall in Asia.
See also: Meet Nikhil Kamath, India's Youngest Billionaire
Want to know who made the top 10? Here, we’re listing the richest billionaires in all of Asia to know.
1. Mukesh Ambani
Country: India
Net worth: US$84.5 billion
Overall ranking: 10
The chairman, managing director and largest shareholder of energy and telecom giant Reliance Industries—which has interests in petrochemicals, oil and gas, telecom and retail and has seen a surge in value over the last year—Mumbai-based Mukesh Ambani is the richest man in Asia.
Though his wealth fell in 2020 to US$36.8 billion from US$50 billion in 2019, today his fortune stands at a staggering US$84.5 billion. He has moved up the ranks to the 10th spot, after coming in at number 21 in 2020.
"Anything and everything that can go digital is going digital. India cannot afford to be left behind."––Mukesh Ambani