At $3.8 trillion, India's top 500 pvt cos value more than the country's GDP

NSE, Bharti Airtel storm into top 10 for the first time in Axis Bank's Burgundy Private and Hurun India list; Motilal Oswal Financial Services was the fastest-growing company, the report suggests.

India's 500 most valuable non-state run companies' cumulative value at Rs 324 trillion, or $3.8 trillion in 2024 was higher than India's gross domestic product (GDP) for 2023, which according to estimates stood at $3.5 trillion, reveals Axis Bank’s Burgundy Private and Hurun India release.

 

India’s most valuable companies in the 2024 Burgundy Private Hurun India 500, the release said, have a cumulative value of $3.8 trillion (Rs 324 trillion, up 40 per cent), which is higher than the GDP of India and the combined GDPs of UAE, Indonesia, and Spain. 

 

 

The 2024 Burgundy Private Hurun India 500 qualification threshold stood at Rs 9,580 crore, a 43 per cent increase from last year's threshold of Rs 6,700 crore, the release said. For the first time since the inception of the list, all the companies in the 2024 Burgundy Private Hurun India 500 are worth at least a $1 billion despite a depreciated rupee.

 

“The companies from 2024 Burgundy Private Hurun India 500 make up the ‘backbone’ of India's private sector, wielding significant economic influence. Between them, they have a cumulative valuation of US$3.8 trillion, which is higher than India's annual GDP, and employ 8.4 million people. If you want to understand how the Indian economy is developing, understanding the stories behind 2024 Burgundy Private Hurun India 500, India's most valuable companies, is a great place to start,” said Anas Rahman Junaid, Founder and Chief Researcher, Hurun India.

 

With a value of Rs 17.5 trillion, up 12 per cent, Mukesh Ambani-controlled Reliance Industries (RIL) is India’s most valuable company, followed by Tata Consultancy Services at Rs 16.1 trillion, up 30 per cent, and HDFC Bank at Rs 14.2 trillion, up 26 per cent. 

The top league

 

Among the other notable gainers was Motilal Oswal Financial Services that lead the 2024 Burgundy Private Hurun India 500 as the fastest-growing company with a YoY value growth of 297 per cent, followed closely by Inox Wind and Zepto, both nearly tripling their valuations over the year. 

 

Meanwhile, nearly 60 per cent of Burgundy Private Hurun India 500 companies, ranked by value, do not appear in the Fortune India 500, which is ranked by revenue. The Hurun 500 prioritizes future profit potential over current sales. 

 

"The list does not include state-owned enterprises, so India's most valuable state-owned listed company, State Bank of India (SBI), worth about Rs 7.7 trillion, is not on the list. Well over 100 Indian state-owned companies could have made our list, both listed companies and non-listed companies, such as LIC, NTPC, ONGC, etc." the release said.

 

First timers

 

For the first time, Bharti Airtel stormed into the top 5 with an Rs 9.74 trillion valuation, a 75 per cent increase, climbing two spots. 

 

The National Stock Exchange (NSE), valued at Rs 4.7 trillion also broke into the Top 10 for the first time since the inception of the 2024 Burgundy Private Hurun India 500.

 

"The NSE surged by 201 per cent in value to Rs 4.7 trillion, overtaking SII, to emerge as India’s most valued unlisted company. Logistics startup Zepto (269 per cent), the National Stock Exchange (201 per cent), and Physics Wallah (172 per cent) topped the value growth (per cent) among unlisted companies," the release said.