Gautam Adani, the richest man in Asia, shares fourth place with Bill Gates in the global wealth rankings

Gautam Adani’s net worth of $112 billion, is now equal to the wealth valuation of Bill Gates, the co-founder of Microsoft Corp, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

The Indian businessman has increased his wealth by $35.6 billion this year, more than any other person, whereas Bil Gates has decreased as a result of his accelerated charitable giving and the depreciating value in Microsoft shares amid the bearish market in play.

The Indian billionaire, whose business is based on coal, ports, and agricultural markets, has been climbing the wealth ladder, which has historically been dominated by US tech innovators. He has been quickly expanding his business into renewable energy, airports, data centres, digital services, and media, matching his strategy with the goals of nation-building set forward by Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi.

The first-generation businessman and college dropout, who began his career in the late 1980s with an Agri-trading company, has accumulated practically all of his money in the last two years as his efforts to diversify have become more serious.

He said in November that his business would invest $70 billion by 2030 in the development of the Carmichael coal mining project in Australia, a commitment that is frequently attacked by environmentalists.

Recently, he has been looking into prospective commercial deals with Aramco, including the idea of purchasing a stake in the Saudi oil tycoon. He also recently paid $10.5 billion for the Indian cement operations of Holcim Ltd. to explore more leverage

The Indian billionaire further announced the establishment of a new media subsidiary to tap into the fast-growing local entertainment market.

Billionaires and charity

• Some of the wealthiest people in the world have increased their humanitarian giving. Adani has boosted his donations to charity. He promised to gift $7.7 billion to a charity in June to commemorate his 60th birthday.
• This month, Gates said that he will donate $20 billion to his foundation, more than covering the $15 billion that he and his ex-wife committed to giving in 2021.
• When he made the statement, the previous year’s pledge was taken into account in the wealth index, and $5 billion more was added to that liability for the new promise, bringing Gates’s net worth to slightly below Adani’s.
• Warren Buffett, who is now at No. 7, has given the charity more than $35 billion, including $3.1 billion in just June.

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