Indian families have built the UAE alongside Emiratis for over a century. Today they own some of the largest private fortunes in the country. Here are the most prominent Indian billionaires based in the UAE or with deep UAE roots.
M.A. Yusuff Ali
Chairman of LuLu Group International, headquartered in Abu Dhabi. LuLu operates hundreds of hypermarkets across the GCC, India and beyond. One of the most influential business figures in the country and a recipient of the UAE's highest civilian honours.
Micky Jagtiani family (Landmark Group)
Although Micky Jagtiani passed away in 2023, the Landmark Group continues under family leadership in Dubai with brands including Centrepoint, Babyshop, Splash, Home Centre and Lifestyle.
P.N.C. Menon and Yasmeen Menon (Sobha)
Founder of Sobha Realty, one of the most prominent luxury developers in the UAE with major projects in Dubai, including Sobha Hartland.
Rizwan Sajan
Founder of Danube Group, one of the largest building materials and homebuilders in the UAE, also rapidly scaling Danube Properties.
B.R. Shetty (historical)
A controversial figure whose NMC Healthcare collapsed, but historically one of the most prominent Indian business figures in the UAE. Mentioned for completeness.
Sunny Varkey
Founder of GEMS Education, the largest K to 12 private schools operator in the world by enrolment, headquartered in Dubai.
Pankaj Gupta and the GMG family
GMG and the Galadari family hold major distribution interests including Baskin Robbins Middle East and several sports retail brands.
Lakshmi Mittal (deep UAE links)
The ArcelorMittal chairman has invested into UAE real estate and sits within the broader Indian business diaspora active in the country.
Naveen Jindal, Shashi Ruia family and several others
A long tail of major Indian industrial families have UAE residences, family offices and material investments, even where their primary businesses sit in India.
Why so many
The combination of cultural familiarity, 130 plus years of historical Indo Gulf trade, the Golden Visa for investors and a stable tax environment makes the UAE the natural overseas base for Indian wealth. Today over a third of UAE's population is of Indian origin.
If you are part of an Indian family looking at a UAE residence or trophy investment, our private client team handles many of these mandates.