The Wealth Wallahs

Book excerpt: By 2018, India will be home to 3.58 lakh millionaires, doubling its tally from 1.5 lakh in 2013. In a country where risk is fast proving to be its own reward, a new cadre of wealth creators is building large fortunes at a breakneck pace. Not only do their successes mirror a bolder nation, they reflect new attitudes to generating, managing and leveraging wealth in a changing India. Gold biscuits, cash stuffed in mattresses and swathes of land are passé; aspirational India is no longer at the mercy of old conduits to more wealth. India is creating wealth differently and faster than any other economy in the world. This book chronicles the story of the country's new wealthy and the people helping them manage these riches. It also traces the journey of a young wealth management company that has in less than a decade become an industry frontrunner by building a business catering to the new wealthy. In a post-2008 world, the story of IIFL Wealth and its three founders is also a story of entrepreneurial dynamism in India. Much like the clients they service, these three are also riding a perfect storm of opportunity.