LuLu Chairman, Unilever Honcho Named Top Indian Business Owner, Executive in Arab World: Forbes

Yusuff Ali MA, the chairman and managing director of the LuLu Group International, is the topmost Indian business owners in the Middle East, according to a recent list released by Forbes Middle East. BR Shetty, the founder-chairman of BRS Ventures, and Ravi Pillai, the founder-chairman of RP Group of Companies, figure at the second and third spot, respectively, in the list of  follow Yusuff Ali in the magazine’s list of “Top 100 Indian Business Owners in The Arab World 2018.”

Indian-origin billionaires based in Gulf have a collective net worth of $30.8 billion, according to Forbes’ World’s Billionaires 2018.

Forbes Middle East also released two more lists — “Top 50 Indian Executives In The Arab World 2018,” and “Top Indian Leaders: Next Generation 2018” — to acknowledge the contribution of the Indian diaspora in the Arab world.

Sanjeev Kakkar, executive vice president, Middle East, North Africa, Turkey, Russia, Ukraine and Belarus of Unilever, was named as the topmost Indian executive in the Middle East, followed by Kalyana Sivagnanam, president/ regional vice president of Nissan Middle East/ Africa, Middle East and India.

“The Indian community is the most populous expat community in the Gulf, and probably the most successful too,” the publication said. “Many are long time residents of the region, having come to the Gulf much before the advent of oil that prospered the local economies.”

The Forbes magazine also acknowledged the next generation of Indian leaders in the Gulf, who will carry forward their parents’ legacies, and play an active role in their family businesses. The list was topped by Binay Shetty, vice chairman and CEO of BRS Ventures, followed by Ganesh Ravi Pillai, vice president of RP GRoup.