Mukesh Ambani, Chairman, Reliance Industries Ltd, is setting up a family office in Singapore. The Mumbai-based business tycoon is the latest in a series of ultra-rich people to pick Singapore for their family offices, the organisations set up to manage the affairs of wealthy clans by joining the likes of hedge fund billionaire Ray Dalio and Google co-founder Sergey Brin.
The city-state has become an attractive hub for family offices thanks to its low taxes and relative security. The Monetary Authority of Singapore estimates about 700 were in place by the end of 2021, up from 400 a year earlier.
Ambani’s move to set up the family office ties in with his larger vision of taking his retail-to-refining empire global and acquiring assets outside India. While announcing the appointment of Aramco’s chairman on the board of Reliance in 2021, the billionaire told his shareholders that this marked “the beginning of internationalisation” of his conglomerate, without elaborating. “You will hear more about our international plans in the times to come,” he said.
Ambani, who is worth an estimated $83.7 billion according to the Bloomberg Wealth Index. His wife Nita Ambani is also helping to set it up.
Reliance has its legacy oil refining and petrochemicals business toward e-commerce, green energy and the expansion of its retail footprint across India. In 2020, its technology venture Jio Platforms Ltd., more than $25 billion from marquee Silicon Valley investors including Meta Platforms Inc. and Google. It has ambitious plans to take on Amazon.com Inc. in the country, including in streaming.
