Pandemic-hit 2021 sees top companies' valuation rise 68%: Report

Top Indian companies by valuation saw their networth rise by 68 per cent this year despite the pandemic, which has otherwise had a disastrous impact on small businesses and normal life, a report said on Thursday.

The Burgundy Private Hurun India 500 list's overall networth stands at Rs 228 lakh crore or USD 3 trillion (higher than India's GDP), and it has 200 companies whose valuation doubled during the year.

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The list is led by richest Indian Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries with a valuation of Rs 16.7 lakh crore, followed by Tata Consultancy Services (Rs 13.1 lakh crore) and HDFC Bank (Rs 9.1 lakh crore).

In the unlisted space, vaccine-maker Serum Institute of India (SII) is valued the highest at Rs 1.8 lakh crore. The pandemic year saw the Pune-based company's valuation surge by 127 per cent.

The companies come from 43 cities across the country, and the financial capital Mumbai leads with 167 entrants, followed by Bengaluru at 52 and Chennai at 38.

From a sectoral perspective, financial services leads with 77 names in the list, followed by healthcare at 64.

The total sales of these companies stood at Rs 58 lakh crore, accounting for 26 per cent of the Indian GDP. The overall employment in this list, which excludes state-run enterprises, is 69 lakh people or 1.5 per cent of the overall workforce.

When it comes to startups, the list said 11 per cent of the featuring companies are less than 10 years old, led by Mensa Brands, Apna, CRED and BharatPe.

Amitabh Chaudhry, the managing director and chief executive of Axis Bank, the promoter of the wealth management platform Burgundy, said while the internet and e-commerce based companies have raised money at high valuations, very soon they will have to show cash flows, failing which there can be value erosion in them.

Companies in the list contributed Rs 1.9 lakh crore or 62 per cent of the overall corporate income tax collection in FY21, as per a statement.