India Growth Story: What Makes It Asia's New Billionaire Capital? Hurun India's Founder Answers

India has emerged as the new billionaire capital of Asia, with Mumbai overtaking Beijing in 2024, signalling the nation’s rise in wealth creation. In an exclusive interaction with Republic Business, Anas Rahman Junaid, founder of Hurun India, shared a bullish outlook on India’s booming high-net-worth individual (HNI) segment.

India’s wealth story has truly come of age. Over the last 12 years, the number of individuals with a net worth exceeding Rs 1,000 crores has skyrocketed from a modest 100 to an astounding 1,540, according to Junaid. But this is just the tip of the iceberg—what stands out even more is the meteoric rise in the number of US dollar billionaires in India, surging from 59 in 2012 to a staggering 334 today, reflecting a near sixfold growth.

Wealth across cities, age groups, and sectors

Junaid stressed that wealth creation is no longer confined to traditional metros like Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru. While the first rich list only covered 18-20 cities, today, that number has expanded to over 120 cities and pin codes across India, including tier 2 and tier 3 cities.

The youngest billionaire in 2012 was 35 years old; now, the youngest is just 20. Junaid highlights the emergence of millennial self-made entrepreneurs, with over 95 companies founded after the year 2000, collectively valued at Rs13 lakh crores and employing over 1.2 lakh people.

Why India excels

In the global context, Junaid proudly pointed out India’s rapid rise in the billionaire ranks. While India was ranked 8th in the number of billionaires in 2012, it now stands at 3rd place—just behind the US and China. Interestingly, last year saw China experience a 25% decline in the number of billionaires, while India surged by 20-25%. Mumbai has replaced Beijing as Asia’s billionaire capital for the first time in 2024.

“India’s wealth creation is not just the domain of new-age tech entrepreneurs,” Junaid said. “Traditional family businesses and first-generation entrepreneurs are also significant contributors to the growing wealth pool. The bottom-up approach in India, where wealth is created from within the market and not just by top-down government policies, makes our economic model more stable compared to China.”

Entrepreneurs and the road ahead

While India’s wealth creation is increasingly diverse, Junaid said that some sectors are facing challenges. Technology entrepreneurs, particularly those in the startup space, have faced headwinds following the drying up of funding windows. However, he remains optimistic, forecasting a rebound with successful IPOs like Zomato , Swiggy , and Mobikwik that could rejuvenate startup valuations and provide much-needed liquidity.