Indian-born industrialist Lakshmi Mittal has topped the Sunday Times Rich List this year for the seventh year running. However, his wealth has been eroded by plunging share prices last year, but he still managed to retain his title as Britain’s wealthiest person.
The 60-year-old head of steel giant Arcelor Mittal and his family are worth an estimated £17.514 billion, down from 22.45 billion, a drop of 22 per cent.
The Hinduja brothers, Srichand and Gopichand, made the Top 10 list this year, with their wealth jointly assessed at £6 billion. The brothers, better known as SP and GP, managed to get the ninth spot on the list.
The Hindujas were ranked number four on the list in 2007 and 2008, but did not feature on the list in 2009 and 2010.
The Essar Group’s Ravi Ruia, who lives in London, is another new entry — for his fortune valued at £4.9 billion. The 62-year-old Indian industrialist floated Essar Energy on the London Stock Exchange last year.
Indian-born mining tycoon Anil Agarwal, who owns Vedanta Resources, lost his spot in the Top 10 and slipped to 17th place on the rich list as his fortune dropped from £4.1 billion last year to £3.81 billion this year.
The 58-year-old was the highest climber in the rich list last year.
He had moved 60 places up to the 10th spot as his wealth had jumped by a staggering 583 per cent — from £600 million to £4.1 billion.