LONDON: It had been reported according to ‘Sunday Times rich list 2018’ that two Pakistani-origin businessmen are among the British nationals with a net worth of one billion pounds.
Gujar Khan-born Anwar Pervez is the first Pakistan-born British national on the list with a net worth of 3.09 billion pounds. On the list, British chemical tycoon Jim Ratcliffe is at the top with a net worth of over 21 billion pounds.
The rise of Anwar Pervez is considered among the most inspiring rags-to-riches stories in the UK. He arrived in the UK at the age of 21 and set up a convenience store in west London with his savings. In 1976, he set up a warehouse with very small seed money. The company then named Bestway now stands as a strong business group with stakes from cash-and-carry to pharmacy.
After restricting itself within cash and carry sector under its own brand for a long time, Bestway Group has lately started expanding. In Pakistan, it launched Bestway Cement, which has become the country’s second-largest producer, with significant exports to Afghanistan.
The family of Zameer Chaudrey, the chief executive and co-founder of the Bestway Group and nephew of Anwar Pervez, is the second British Pakistani on the list with a net worth of £1.2 billion.
There are many Indian-origin businessmen on the rich list. Lakshmi Mittal is fifth on the list with a net worth of 14.6 billion pounds. Sr Prakash Lohia, an industrialist with stakes in Textile and Plastics and brother-in-law of Lakshmi Mittal, is 25th on the rich list with a net worth of 5.1 billion pounds.
Egyptian-born businessman Mohammed Al Fayed maintained his 79th position on the list with a net fortune of 1.7 billion pounds.
