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India's best-known stock investor Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, dubbed the country's Warren Buffett, died on Sunday, prompting an outpouring of tributes for a self-made billionaire whose fortunes rose with the country's economy.
Mr Jhunjhunwala died of cardiac arrest at the age of 62, a week after the launch of his budget airline Akasa Air. He looked and sounded frail while promoting the carrier.
Mr Jhunjhunwala, who had kidney and ischaemic heart disease, is survived by his wife, whom he used to call his only client, and three children.
He leaves stakes in around three dozen Indian companies and a legacy of quoting one-liners like "the trend is your friend" and "the only rule I have is there are no rules".
"All I've known is trading and investing. I don't want to do anything else in life," Jhunjhunwala told Reuters 10 years ago.
"I'll call it quits the day I die."
On Monday, he told CNBC-TV18 that India's economy, Asia's third-biggest, was "entering a golden age" and he expressed hope that "my fellow Indians are as optimistic as I am".
Mr Jhunjhunwala was a big public supporter of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who lauded him on Sunday as "indomitable, full of life, witty and insightful".
Mr Jhunjhunwala's communication skills helped small investors understand the stock market, said Mumbai-based businessmen and bankers who interacted with him for over 30 years.
His insights on the economy and companies also made Mr Jhunjhunwala a TV celebrity.
Born in Rajasthan and trained in chartered accountancy, he started dabbling in stocks as a teenager and went on to manage a stock trading firm, RARE Enterprises.
Mr Jhunjhunwala's net worth was about US$6 billion, according to Forbes.
He was the 36th richest billionaire in India, according to Forbes' 2021 listing.
He made his first big profit by buying 5,000 shares in Tata Tea on borrowed money, confident the markets had underestimated the potential of a company looking to grow at a time of rising yield production.
He trebled his money within months.
Better, bigger investments followed, including a leveraged bet in the late 1980s on iron ore exporter Sesa Goa. Mr Jhunjhunwala bought the stock at Rs60 and sold it at Rs2,200.
His firm's investments include many Tata Group companies, watchmaker Titan, Tata Communications and Indian Hotels, which runs the Taj hotels.
Other investments include Indiabulls Housing Finance, Star Health Insurance, Federal Bank and vocational training company Aptech.
Mr Jhunjhunwala earlier told Reuters the growth of the Indian stock market since the country's economy was liberalised in 1991 - a period in which the main Sensex index has risen about 40-fold - was a big factor in his success.
"Investor, bold risk-taker, masterly understanding of the stock market, clear in communication - a leader in his own right," India's Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman wrote in a tribute on Twitter.
"Had strong belief in India's strength and capabilities."
Mr Uday Kotak, Kotak Mahindra Bank CEO and schoolmate, said Mr Jhunjhunwala believed stock-India was undervalued.
"He was right."
Mr Kotak tweeted: "Amazingly sharp in understanding financial markets. We spoke regularly, more so during Covid. Will miss you, Rakesh!"
AFP
"All I've known is trading and investing. I don't want to do anything else in life. I'll call it quits the day I die."
- Rakesh Jhunjhunwala
