Meet man who set up his 1st business at 18, now beats Mukesh Ambani and Gautam Adani in...; his net worth is Rs...

Despite market volatility in the first half of 2025, several Indian billionaires, including Mukesh Ambani and Gautam Adani, saw significant growth in their wealth. The duo are India's richest billionaires. However, neither Ambani nor Adani recorded the most wealth surge during this period. But who earned the most money during the first half of 2025? He was Satyanarayan Nuwal, co-founder and chairman of Solar Industries India.

Who is Satyanarayan Nuwal?

Nuwal is a billionaire who recorded the highest surge in wealth during the first half of 2025, with his net worth soaring by over 78 per cent to USD 7.90 billion, according to Bloomberg Billionaire Index data. He started Solar Industries India in 1995 to trade in industrial explosives then started manufacturing them. Nuwal set up his first business, an ink manufacturing unit, in 1970 at age 18. He is now 72 and lives in Nagpur.

He used to sleep at the railway station when he was broke. Nuwal tried his hand at several businesses before latching on to industrial explosives, but they all failed. His company is headquartered in Nagpur, manufactures explosives, detonators, drones, and ammunition. Solar Industries India currently has a market cap of Rs 1.52 lakh crore, as of July 3. The share of the company closed at Rs 16,825 on Thursday.

The company's stock jumped 81 per cent in 2025, following gains of 45 per cent in 2024 and 54 per cent in 2023. This year, the company's stock is witnessing a strong jump of about 81 per cent. The biggest chunk of the company's annual revenue is from exports, followed by housing and infrastructure, state-owned coal companies and the defence sector.

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