From: Rohit Khare (Rohit@KnowNow.com)
Date: Sun Sep 24 2000 - 15:26:25 PDT
3 Indians debut on Forbes list
Monika Raj
Thursday, September 21, 2000
Three Indians joined the ranks of the rich and famous by making their
debuts on the Forbes list of the 400 richest Americans this year. In
all, seven Indians in the US figured on the list, all of them
billionaires.
The newcomers to the list are: Gururaj Deshpande of Sycamore
Networks; Pradeep Sindhu of Juniper Networks; and Romesh Wadhwani of
Aspect Development (now merged with i2 Technologies). Other Indians
on the list are: Sanjiv Sidhu, founder of i2 Technologies; Naveen
Jain, founder of InfoSpace; Vinod Khosla, general partner in the
venture firm of Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers; and Rajendra
Singh, founder of Teligent.
Amar Bose, founder of Bose Corporation, was among the dropouts. Last
year, he was ranked 384 with an estimated net worth of $650 million.
Sidhu, the reclusive founder of Dallas-based i2 Technologies, was the
highest ranked Indian. He catapulted to 24th spot, from 223rd last
year as his net worth soared from $1.2 billion to an estimated $9.8
billion, making him the richest Indian on the planet. Sidhu, who
hails from Hyderabad, was on the Forbes list early in the 1990s and
re-entered the list only last year.
Deshpande, whose net worth Forbes estimated at $7.6 billion, is the
next highest ranked Indian on the list at No. 32. The co-founder and
chairman of Sycamore Networks was previously the founder of Cascade
Communications, which was acquired by Ascend Communications.
Jain, now the chairman and chief strategist of InfoSpace, was ranked
121 with a net worth of $2.2 billion, up from a ranking of 280 and
wealth of $930 million last year. At 41, he is the youngest Indian on
the list.
Singh, one of the most successful entrepreneurs in the wireless
space, was ranked 207 with an estimated wealth of $1.4 billion. Last
year, he was ranked joint 223 with Sidhu and others with a net worth
of $1.1 billion.
Sindhu, who founded Juniper Networks, was at 104th spot with an
estimated wealth of $2.5 billion. His net worth soared as the router
maker's stock soared since it went public.
Wadhwani was ranked 218th with an estimated wealth of $1.3 billion.
Earlier this year, he merged his Aspect Development, a B2B player,
with Sidhu's i2 Technologies.
Khosla's ranking dropped, from 243 last year to 274. His net worth
was, however, estimated at the same $1 billion.
Another South Asian on the Forbes list of richest Americans is
Michael Chowdry, who runs Atlas Air in Denver. He was ranked 309th
with an estimated net worth of $920 million. Last year, he was ranked
373 with an estimated wealth of $675 million.
Ranking Name Net Worth
24 Sanjiv Sidhu $9.8 billion
32 Gururaj Deshpande $7.6 billion
104 Pradeep Sindhu $2.5 billion
121 Naveen Jain $2.2 billion
207 Rajendra Singh $1.4 billion
218 Romesh Wadhwani $1.3 billion
274 Vinod Khosla $1.0 billion
Forbes' worldwide list contains nine Indian billionaires outside the
US. Wipro chairman Azim Premji leads the pack with a net worth of $
6.90 billion, followed by Dhirubhai Ambani (Reliance Group) at $6.60
billion. Others on the list are: Kumar Mangalam Birla (A.V. Birla
Group); Subash Chandra (Zee TV); Lakshmi Mittal (Mittal Steel);
Ramalinga Raju (Satyam Group); Vinay Rai (Information Technologies
[India]); Shiv Nadar (HCL); and the Hinduja family.
Ranking Name Net Worth
43 Azim Premji $6.9 billion
45 Dhirubhai Ambani $6.6 billion
128 Shiv Nadar $3.7 billion
155 Subhash Chandra $3.0 billion
197 Lakshmi Mittal $2.1 billion
212 Vinay Rai $2.0 billion
226 Kumar Mangalam Birla $1.7 billion
276 Ramalinga Raju $1.3 billion
307 Hinduja Family $1.0 billion
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