From Anil Agarwal to Byju Raveendran, here are the dropouts from the 2023 Rich L
Eight billionaires from the 2022 Rich List did not make it to the list this year

India’s 100 richest saw their wealth flatline at $799 billion this year. While some from the top 10 club saw the biggest drop in wealth, eight billionaires from the 2022 Richest Indians list did not make it to this year’s list. Some prominent names include Vedanta’s Anil Agarwal, BYJU’s Byju Raveendran and Divya Gokulnath and Info Edge’s Sanjeev Bikhchandani among others.
BYJU"S
Wealth in 2022: $3.6 billion
Rank in 2022: 54
Edtech entrepreneur Byju Raveendran was a constant on India’s 100 richest list for four years. But this year, thanks to an auditor’s resignation over long overdue financial results, mass exits of board members and many more issues, BYJU’s is struggling. This has resulted in a significant drop in Raveendran’s wealth, which according to Forbes, is at $2.1 billion as of April 2023.
Vedanta Resources
Wealth in 2022: $2.01 billion
Rank in 2022: 97
Anil Agarwal’s diversified conglomerate makes everything from steel and iron ore to aluminium and oil at the $18-billion Vedanta Group. However, Vedanta Resources, Agarwal’s London-based parent company, has a debt problem, with over $15 billion in dues as of March this year, including over $8 billion at Vedanta Limited, the Indian company owned by Vedanta Resources. For many months now, the London-based Vedanta has been under the scanner for its upcoming payments. In 2024, Vedanta must repay over $2 billion held in bonds including $1 billion in January and August 2024. The year after, in FY25, there are debt obligations worth $3 billion.
Solar Industries India
Wealth in 2022: $3 billion
Rank in 2022: 72
Satyanarayan Nuwal started Solar Industries India in 1995 to trade in industrial explosives, then started manufacturing them. The biggest chunk of its annual revenue is from exports, followed by housing and infrastructure, state-owned coal companies and the defence sector. It has 25 manufacturing locations across India and exports to more than 50 countries. This year though, according to Forbes, his wealth is down from $3 billion last year to $1.8 billion in 2023.
Embassy Group
Wealth in 2022: $1.95 billion
Rank in 2022: 99
Jitendra Virwani is the chairman and MD of Embassy Group. The real estate group has developed more than 62 million sq ft across India. Embassy, together with private equity firm Blackstone, listed India"s first-ever REIT in March 2019. The company has a roster of multinational tenants such as Google, IBM and Warburg Pincus. In May 2021, Virwani and Warburg Pincus sold their jointly owned Embassy Industrial Parks to Blackstone for $718 million.
Info Edge (India)
Wealth in 2022: $2.15 billion
Rank in 2022: 92
Sanjeev Bikhchandani quit his job as a product executive to launch naukri.com in 1997. The founder and executive vice chairman of Info Edge is known to have paved the way for Indian startups and is also an investor and philanthropist now. His wealth in 2023 dropped to $1.8 billion according to Forbes.
Clean Science and Technology
Wealth in 2022: $2.09 billion
Rank in 2022: 94
Ashok Ramnarayan Boob is the MD of Clean Science & Technology Ltd. The company"s speciality chemicals are used in infant food formulas, cosmetics, cereals and several other products. The company also makes pharma intermediaries which are used in cough syrups and anti-retrovirals. Boob became an entrepreneur soon after he turned 54 in 2006. Headquartered in Pune, the company listed in July 2021 at close to double its IPO price.
Relaxo Footwears
Wealth in 2022: $2.32 billion
Rank in 2022: 81
Delhi-based Ramesh Kumar and Mukand Lal Dua founded Relaxo Footwears in 1976. The company is known for its affordable brands such as Sparx (sports shoes), Bahamas (flip flops) and Schoolmate (school shoes). The company has Bollywood actors like Akshay Kumar and Salman Khan as its brand ambassadors.
Vinati Organics
Wealth in 2022: $2.02 billion
Rank in 2022: 96
First Published: Oct 13, 2023, 16:27
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