Dubai retailer is Gulf's wealthiest Indian-origin entrepreneur

Dubai: A Dubai-based Indian businessman has topped the first-ever list of the richest Indian-origin entrepreneurs in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region, with a fortune of $3.2 billion.

A survey by the Arabian Business weekly magazine shows that Landmark boss Micky Jagtiani now has close to $1.5 billion more than his nearest rival in the wealth stakes, New Medical Centre Group boss B R Shetty, who was second with $1.72 billion fortune.

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Covering the 30 richest Indians in the GCC region, the survey placed EMKE Group’s Yusuffali M A in third place with $1.55 billion, while the Chhabria family, owners of the Jumbo Electronics chain, came in fourth with $1.3 billion.

In total, the list has just five billionaires, including fifth placed P N C Menon with a $1.2 billion fortune.

Another notable name that figured in the list was GEMS Group Founder Sunny Varkey, ranked sixth with a $950 million fortune, while Arabian Trading Agency chairman Maghanmal Pancholia rounded off the list with estimated wealth of $170 million, the report said.

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“Wherever you look in the GCC, there are so many success stories of Indian entrepreneurs who came to the region many years ago and have created world-class businesses worth several billion dollars. Micky Jagtiani may have topped this year’s list, but everyone on it is a success story in their own right,” Arabian Business Deputy Editor Edward Attwood said.