Mukesh Ambani enters $100-bn club; analysts see further rise in RIL's m-cap

India's richest promoter and billionaire Mukesh Ambani continues to see steady rise in net worth, thanks to a rally in the share price of Reliance Industries (RIL). Ambani entered the $100-billion club as the value of his family stake in RIL surpassed the $100-billion mark.

The Ambani family's 49.14-per cent stake in RIL was worth around $107 billion on Friday, while the company's market capitalisation (m-cap) reached $218 billion, according to numbers from the Capitaline database. This includes the company’s partly paid shares.

The numbers suggest that Ambani first entered the $100-billion club on Monday and added nearly $8 billion (Rs 54,000 crore) to his networth last week. With this, Ambani has further consolidated his position as India and Asia’s wealthiest businessman and promoter.

Ambani and his flagship RIL have been the biggest beneficiaries of the post-second pandemic wave rally on the bourses. Including the recent rally, RIL's m-cap is up 125 per cent since the end of March 2020 and up nearly 22 per cent since the beginning of the current calendar year.

In comparison, the benchmark BSE Sensex is up 97 per cent since the end of March last year and the index is up 22 per cent since the beginning of the current calendar year.

The company closed Friday with an m-cap of Rs 15.88 trillion, up from Rs 7.05 trillion at the end of March last year, while the promoter stake in the company was worth Rs 7.8 trillion. In the same period, the value of Ambani's family stake in the company was up 132 per cent, from $45.7 billion at the end of March last year to $107 billion now.

The rupee closed on Friday at an exchange rate of Rs 73 to the US dollar. Ambani not only gained from a rally in RIL share price, but also from a steady rise in his family stake in the company.

In the last four years, there has been a steady rise in the promoter stake in RIL, from 45.3 per cent at end of April-June 2017 quarter to 49.14 per cent at the end of June this year, according to the company's shareholding figures from Capitaline database.

The promoters had 48.87 per cent stake in the company at the end of March last year. The recent rise in promoter stake in RIL is attributed to the company’s rights issue last year that led to some change in its shareholding pattern.  

Market analysts expect a further rise in the RIL’s m-cap and consequently Ambani’s networth as the company announced plans to use its financial muscle to make a foray into solar energy.