Blitz Bureau
THE billionaire Hinduja family has topped the Sunday Times Rich List 2025 for the fourth consecutive year, despite a decline in their overall wealth.
Led by Gopichand Hinduja, the family behind the Indian conglomerate Hinduja Group recorded a net worth of £35.3 billion (approximately ₹2,530,000 crore). Their wealth dropped from £37.2 billion to £35.3 billion this year.
Under the leadership of GP Hinduja, the 110-year-old group operates across 38 countries with diversified investments spanning mobility, digital technology, banking and financial services, media, project development, lubricants and specialty chemicals, energy, real estate, trading and healthcare.
In the past year, the Hinduja Group has notably ramped up its focus on electric mobility in India, investing in vehicle charging infrastructure as part of a broader shift toward sustainability and innovation. Decrease in number Beyond their expansive business ventures, the Hinduja family continues to prioritise philanthropy through the Hinduja Foundation, which supports impactful work in education, healthcare, sustainable rural development, and water conservation across various regions.
The Rich List showed a decrease in the number of billionaires for the third year in a row, dropping from 165 to 156, amid criticism of the new Labour Government’s policies, according to news agency PA Media. The fall in the number of billionaires marked the biggest drop since the rich list began 37 years ago.
The new entries in the list included makeup mogul Charlotte Tilbury with £350m and Ellen DeGeneres, who left the US for the Cotswolds last year. The Sunday Times said the list was one of its toughest to compile due to US President Donald Trump’s tariffs and the subsequent stock market turbulence, adding many from previous years had dropped off the list and others were no longer eligible.
Overall, the combined wealth of those on the list stood at £772.8bn – down 3 per cent from the last list. King gets richer David and Simon Reuben and family is ranked number two in the Rich List 2025 with £26.87 billion (₹2,821,350 crore).
The billionaire Reuben brothers, originally from Mumbai and now UK residents, made their fortune in property and technology through their investment firm, Reuben Brothers. Third-placed Sir Leonard Blavatnik with £25.73 billion (Rs 2,700,650 crore) is a Ukrainianborn British-American, who built much of his wealth in Russia and took Warner Music public in 2020.
He is also a notable philanthropist. The other notable names on the 2025 list include Sir James Dyson and family (£20.8 billion), Idan Ofer (£20.121 billion), the Weston family (£17.746 billion), Sir Jim R a t c l i f f e (£17.046 billion), and Lakshmi Mittal and family (£15.444 billion).
In an interesting aside, the Sky News reported that the personal fortune of Britain’s King Charles has shot up by £30 million to put him on a par with former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty in the Sunday Times List.
The list, said the report, shows the King’s personal wealth grew from £610 million to £640 million, taking him up 20 places to 258 – level with Sunak and his wife.
Turning small trading firm into global business giant
MUMBAI: Gopichand Hinduja, also referred to as ‘GP’ by friends and colleagues, succeeded as Chairman of Hinduja Group a year ago after his older brother Srichand died, reported DNA India.
GP, according to the DNA report, first got involved in the family business in 1959 in Mumbai. Ever since, he has been responsible for transforming what was initially a small trading firm into an international business empire. The Hinduja Group’s history dates more than a century. It all started in 1919, when GP’s father Parmanand Deepchand Hinduja, left Sindh (now in Pakistan) to explore new horizons in Iran. The family later shifted their operations to London in 1979, and the rest is history.
With Gopichand at the centre, the Hinduja Group has emerged as a giant with close to 200,000 employees globally. Some of its high points are acquiring Gulf Oil in 1984 and acquiring Ashok Leyland in 1987.
The Hindujas have also left strong fingerprints on London’s property market. They are the owners of the iconic Old War Office building in Whitehall, which was converted into the upscale Raffles London Hotel last year. Carlton House Terrace is another property in their portfolio. The Hinduja family members are dispersed all over the globe. Gopichand operates from London, the brother Prakash resides in Monaco, and the youngest brother Ashok manages the interests of the group in India. Combined, they’ve maintained the family legacy alive and running.
