As the Richest Indians Come to England, London is Proving to be the New Mumbai

LONDON, April 28, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- Although India is moving very fast, entrepreneurs do not yet have access to sophisticated capital markets, such as those in London. Already, the ultra-select community of billionaires from the subcontinent has sufficient numbers for London to be called the new Mumbai.

Recently the National Portrait Gallery revealed the largest known picture from the Mughal period in India, brought to London for its new show, The Indian Portrait. It depicts the 17th-century Emperor Jahangir, resplendent in curled whiskers, a golden waistcoat and three-dimensional jewels, holding a globe. This could be a symbol of the most successful Indians today: Rich as kings, highly educated and urbane, they hold the world in the palm of their hand. An increasing number of these Bollygarchs, as they are being called in an inevitable comparison with the more familiar Russian billionaires, are choosing to make homes in London.

Over the past two years it has been the Indians who have made the market for homes costing more than GBP10 million. In this, the newcomers have followed the lead of the richest man in the UK, Indian steel tycoon Laksmi Mittal, who bought a town palace in Kensington Park Gardens for GBP70 million in 2003. Their buying power has been enhanced by the weakening of the pound, particularly since many businessmen transact in dollars.

As London property buyers, the new Indians are particularly drawn to Mayfair and St James's. "Indians tend to like grand spaces for entertaining, as do the Russians," says Jonathan Hewlett of Savills.

There is also a whole new entrepreneurial and philanthropic set. Cyrus Vandrevala, one of the co-founders of the Intrepid Capital Partners, has been a major donor to Elephant Family, the charity set up by Mark Shand, the Duchess of Cornwall's brother with life-size Indian elephants about to be placed all over London to raise money and awareness to save the endangered species. Vandrevala and his heiress wife, Priya, have also set up a foundation in their name to help fund sufferers from MS and mental illness.

In comparing Mittal with an earlier steelman, Andrew Carnegie, Time magazine notes that Mittal's charitable work - millions of dollars to tsunami relief and other causes - is done quietly, rather than as a vehicle for self-promotion as it was with Carnegie.

What distinguishes these billionaires is, as often as not, their work ethic. Vijay and Bikhu Patel, who founded Waymade Healthcare, came, like many British Asians, via Kenya: from a poor background in the western highlands, they arrived in Britain with just GBP5 in the early 1970s. From a single chemist's shop, they have built a business turning over GBP300m each year. Convenience stores are stereotypically associated with businessmen from the subcontinent: beginning with one in Earl's Court, Sir Anwar Pervez built up the cash-and-carry empire of Bestway, with 50 warehouses across the country. It now employs 4,500 people and is worth GBP230 million.

    Top Twenty Richest Indians
    [Please note - these are in no particular order]
    VIJAY MALLYA
    Owner of Kingfisher Beer and Kingfisher Airlines
    SHAPOOR MISTRY

The foundation of the Mistry family's wealth is an 18.5% stake in Tata Sons, the motor manufacturer, acquired by Shapoor and Cyrus's father, Pallonji Mistry.

ANIL AGARWAL

Founded the mining group Vendanta Resources in the 1980s.

SHASHI AND RAVI RUIA

In 2007, the Ruias were listed for the first time as one of India's ten richest families, with a net worth of $12bn.

LAKSHMI MITTAL

Founded the Mittal Steel Company in 1976, and it's now the largest steelmaker in the world.

CYRUS VANDREVALA

Started investing in technology businesses his 20s and now has global investments in a multiple of public and private companies ranging from Telecom, infrastructure, energy, real estate, food and cement.

NARESH GOYAL

Owner of Jet Airways, India's largest domestic airline

SAVITRI JINDAL

Savitri Jindal is the richest woman in India, with a net worth of $12.2bn. A widow with nine children, she became non-executive chair of the Jindal Organisation on her late husband's death in a helicopter crash in 2005.

SUNIL MITTAL

His Bharti Group is now the largest mobile phone operator in India, with over 121m subscribers. He is also reorganising the way India shops through a joint venture with WalMart.

KUSHAL PAL (KP) SINGH

His DLF Universal Ltd is the largest real estate company on the planet.

SWRAJ PAUL

He and his brother transformed the modest enterprise at home into an industrial group with interests in steel, engineering, pharmaceuticals, hotels, shipping and tea. Lord Paul and his family are said to be worth GBP500 million.

VIJAY AND BIKHU PATEL

From a single chemist's shop, they have built a business turning over GBP300 million each year.

SRICHAND AND GOPICHAND HINDUJA

They moved here in 1979, to develop their father's trading business. They are now the second richest Asians in Britain, after Lakshmi Mittal, with 25,000 people employed by the Hinduja Group round the world.

ANURAG DIKSHIT

Mr Dikshit's first break came in the dotcom boom, when he was working in the US as a software developer. In his mid twenties, Dikshit wrote the new companies betting software. He now has GBP559 million.

FELIX GROVIT

Is the man behind Chequepoint, the bureaux de change empire, founded in 1974. His wealth is estimated to be GBP430 million.

JASMINDER SINGH

Formed the Edwardian Group with an uncle in 1979, which now has a dozen luxury hotels in the UK and runs Radisson Hotels (as Radisson Edwardian) under franchise.

TOM SINGH

Founded chain New Look in Weymouth 1969, borrowing GBP5,000 with his wife Kuljit to open the first shop.. He and his family are now worth GBP149 million.

MIKE JATANIA AND BROTHERS

Their cosmetics company Lornamead acquires underperforming companies and product lines and revitalizes them; this, together with a property portfolio in London, has created a family fortune of GBP1 billion.

SIR ANWAR PERVEZ

Beginning with one in Earl's Court, Sir Anwar Pervez built up the cash-and-carry empire of Bestway, with 50 warehouses across the country. It now employs 4,500 people and is worth GBP230 million.

VIKRANT BHARGAVA

Former marketing director of PartyGaming. Bhargava left PartyGaming in 2006 to devote himself to media and real estate businesses, as well as philanthropy. Net worth: GBP230 million.

SOURCE APR Communications