Lakshmi Mittal
Indian steel magnate and executive chairman of ArcelorMittal.
Lakshmi Niwas Mittal, born 15 June 1950 in Sadulpur, Rajasthan, is an Indian billionaire and steel magnate. He serves as executive chairman of ArcelorMittal, the world’s largest steelmaker by production volume, and also chairs the stainless steel firm Aperam. Mittal holds a 38% stake in ArcelorMittal and a 75% ownership of the Indian Premier League team Rajasthan Royals. After living in the United Kingdom from 1995, he later moved to Switzerland and the United Arab Emirates.
In 2005, Forbes ranked him the third-richest person globally, making him the first Indian citizen to appear in the top ten of its annual wealth list. By 2011, he had slipped to sixth place, then to 82nd in March 2015, and further to 130th by October 2024. Forbes also named him the 57th-most powerful person among 72 individuals on its 2015 “Most Powerful People” list. His daughter Vanisha Mittal’s 2005 wedding was the sixth-most expensive in recorded history. As of 2024, the Sunday Times Rich List estimated his net worth at £15.444 billion.
Mittal was a Goldman Sachs board member from 2008 to 2022. He sits on the World Steel Association’s executive committee and belongs to the Global CEO Council of the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, the World Economic Forum’s International Business Council, and the European Round Table of Industrialists. He is also a trustee of the Cleveland Clinic. In 2005, The Sunday Times named him “Business Person of 2006,” the Financial Times called him “Person of the Year,” and Time magazine designated him “International Newsmaker of the Year 2006.” Time included him in its “Time 100” list in 2007.
Mittal attended Shri Daulatram Nopany Vidyalaya in Calcutta from 1957 to 1964 and earned a B.Com degree with first-class honors from St. Xavier’s College, affiliated with the University of Calcutta. His father, Mohanlal Mittal, ran the steel business Nippon Denro Ispat.
In 1976, after the Indian government restricted steel production, the 26-year-old Mittal opened his first steel factory, PT Ispat Indo, in Sidoarjo, East Java, Indonesia. In 1989, he bought the state-owned steel works in Trinidad and Tobago, which were losing money heavily, and turned them profitable within a year. Until the 1990s, the family’s main Indian assets were a cold-rolling mill in Nagpur and an alloy steel plant near Pune. Today, his younger brothers Pramo
- born
- 15 June 1950, Sadulpur, Rajasthan, India
- field
- Steel manufacturing, business
- nationality
- Indian
- known_for
- Executive chairman of ArcelorMittal; first Indian in Forbes top ten richest people
- net_worth_2024
- £15.444 billion (Sunday Times Rich List)
Quick Facts
- Birth Date
- 1950-06-15
- Birth Place
- Sadulpur, Rajasthan, India
- Education
- St. Xavier's College, Kolkata, (B.Com.)
- Occupation
- Chairman of ArcelorMittal & Aperam / Owner of Karrick Limited / Co-owner of Queens Park Rangers F.C.
- Known For
- Steel magnate / King of Steel
- Boards
- Goldman Sachs
- Spouse
- Usha Mittal
- Children
- 2, including Aditya Mittal
- Relatives
- Pramod Mittal (brother)
- Family
- Mittal family
- Awards
- Padma Vibhushan (2008)
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Lakshmi Mittal was born into a Marwari family in Sadulpur, Rajasthan, and studied at Shri Daulatram Nopany Vidyalaya in Calcutta before earning a B.Com degree from St. Xavier's College, University of Calcutta. His father, Mohanlal Mittal, ran a steel business. In 1976, due to Indian government curbs on steel production, the 26-year-old Mittal opened his first steel factory in Sidoarjo, East Java, Indonesia. He later purchased state-owned steel works in Trinidad and Tobago in 1989, turning them profitable within a year. In 1995, he bought the Irish Steel plant in Cork for a nominal fee, though it closed in 2001, leading to environmental cleanup disputes. By 2001, he had acquired assets renamed Ispat Mexicana and Ispat Karmet, and in 2003 he secured steel assets from the Romanian and Polish governments. In 2006–07, he succeeded in a hostile takeover of Arcelor, forming ArcelorMittal.
Reader's Guide
Lakshmi Mittal's significance lies in his transformation of the global steel industry through aggressive acquisitions and consolidation, culminating in the creation of ArcelorMittal, the world's second largest steelmaker. His career reflects the rise of Indian industrialists on the world stage, marked by his 2005 Forbes ranking as the third-richest person globally. However, his legacy is mixed: his Irish Steel plant closure and environmental issues drew criticism, and allegations of 'slave labour' conditions arose after fatal mine explosions in Kazakhstan. His political involvement, including a letter from Tony Blair supporting his Romanian bid, sparked a lobbying scandal. Mittal also contributed to sports, founding the Mittal Champions Trust after India's poor Olympic showings, and holds a 75% stake in the IPL team Rajasthan Royals. His philanthropic donations include £15 million to Great Ormond Street Hospital and ₹100 crore to India's PM Cares Fund during the COVID-19 pandemic. He resides in Switzerland and the United Arab Emirates after leaving the UK in 2025.
Did You Know?
- Mittal was ranked the third-richest person in the world by Forbes in 2005, the first Indian citizen in the top ten.
- His daughter Vanisha Mittal's 2005 wedding was the sixth-most expensive in recorded history.
- He purchased the Irish Steel plant in Cork for a nominal fee of IR£1 in 1995; it closed in 2001.
- Mittal owns 38% of ArcelorMittal and a 75% stake in the IPL team Rajasthan Royals.
More in Wealthy Misfortunes 1-24
Spotted an error? Know more?
This is a living reference — every entry is fact-audited, and reader corrections feed straight into our audit queue. Suggest an edit · See this site's audit record