Owner of Akasa Air and billionaire investor Rakesh Jhunjhunwala passes away at 62
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Mumbai: Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, a seasoned stock market investor known as India's Warren Buffett, passed away in Mumbai on Sunday morning. He was 62.
A source in his newly founded airline revealed that Jhunjhunwala passed away early this morning as the result of a heart attack.
According to Forbes, Jhunjhunwala, who is frequently referred to as "India's Warren Buffett" and the Big Bull of Indian markets, had a net worth of USD 5.8 billion (about Rs 46,000 crore).
Narendra Modi, the prime minister, expressed sorrow at Jhunjhunwala's loss. "Rakesh Jhunjhunwala was indomitable," he tweeted.
He began trading stocks while still, a college student with barely Rs 5,000, and most recently joined up with the former CEOs of Jet Airways and IndiGo to create Akasa Air, India's newest low-cost airline. This month, the airline launched its commercial operations with an inaugural flight from Mumbai to Ahmedabad.
He was the 48th richest man in the nation and a Midas touch investor. He was a chartered accountant by training but he chose Dalal Street instead of auditing accounts.
Jhunjhunwala contributed Rs 5,000 as capital in 1985. That capital had grown to Rs 11,000 crore by September 2018.
Star Health, Titan, Rallis India, Escorts, Canara Bank, Indian Hotels Company, Agro Tech Foods, Nazara Technologies, and Tata Motors are just a few of the businesses in his portfolio. At the end of the June quarter, he owned a total of 47 enterprises. His main holdings included Tata Motors, Metro Brands, Titan, and Star Health, ANI reported.
He served on the boards of directors for companies like Viceroy Hotels, Concord Biotech, Provogue India, and Geojit Financial Services. He was the chairman of Hungama Media and Aptech.
Jhunjhunwala, who was born on July 5, 1960, to a Rajasthani family, was raised in Bombay where his father was an income tax commissioner. After completing his studies at Sydenham College, he applied to the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India.
When he purchased 5,000 shares in Tata Tea in 1986 for Rs 43, the price increased to Rs 143 within three months, and he made his first significant profit. He made between Rs 20 and 25 lakh in three years.
Sensex was at 150 points when Jhunjhunwala first began trading. The first two letters of his name and those of his wife Rekha, who is also an investor in the stock market, were used to create the name of his privately held stock trading company, Rare Enterprises.