Anil Ambani's journey from $42 billion net worth to claiming poverty
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Feb 8, 2020, 17:13 IST
In 2008, Anil Ambani was at his peak with a net worth of $42 billion, according to Forbes.
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By 2011, his net worth collapsed 4-fold to $8.8 billion after the 2G scandal broke and the Central Bureau of Investigation’s (CBI) enquiry into his involvement with Swan Telecom.
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In 2013, Anil Ambani’s net worth fell by another $3 billion to $5.2 billion as Reliance Power lost steam.
By 2016, his worth halved to $2.5 billion after many of its companies ran into debt and operational troubles. Reliance Power was selling its assets and Reliance Communications was unable to compete against the top reigning telecom companies and was losing consumers.
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By the time 2018 rolled around, Anil Ambani’s net worth saw a slight bump to $2.8 billion.
However, in 2019, Reliance Communications had to file for bankruptcy. The Supreme Court ordered Anil Ambani to pay up or head to jail. His elder brother, Mukesh Ambani - who is Asia’s richest man, bailed him out by paying up ₹4.5 billion.
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Last year, Ambani dropped out of the billionaires club with reports claiming that his net worth is around $500 million. But, Forbes data still shows his net worth to be $1.7 billion.
Thanki claims that Ambani’s fleet of luxury cars is worth $3 million (₹21.4 crore).
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Thanki also points out that Ambani’s luxury yacht named Tian is worth $56 million (₹400 crore).
“It remains unclear how he is funding his $700,000 (₹5 crore) legal fees in these proceedings,” said Banki Thanki QC, the lead counsel for the Chinese banks.
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Justice Waksman was also critical of Ambani’s statements. “He clearly has more assets or income than he is letting on,” said the judge.
“It would be absurd if Mukesh said he could not afford to lend the money given the size of his fortune. This is an extremely wealthy family who have helped each other in the past. I don’t accept his own available assets are as limited as he says,” he added.
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