On July 10, 2025, Forbes released its “America’s Richest Immigrants 2025” list, revealing that India is the top country of origin with 12 India-born billionaires, the highest number of immigrant billionaires in the United States of America (USA). Jay Chaudhry, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Zscaler, is the only Indian-origin billionaire in Forbes’ Top 10 richest immigrant billionaires, ranked 8th with a net worth of USD 17.9 billion.
- The 125 foreign-born USA billionaires from 43 countries hold about USD 1.3 trillion (approximately 18% of USA’s USD 7.2 trillion of billionaire wealth).
- South Africa–born Elon Musk tops the list of immigrant billionaires in USA with a net worth of USD 393.1 billion (Bn), followed by Russia’s Sergey Brin(USD 139.7 Bn) of Google and Taiwan’s Jensen Huang (USD 137.9 Bn) of Nvidia.
Methodology:
Forbes defines immigrant billionaires as foreign-born USA citizens residing in the USA, each with an estimated net worth exceeding USD1 billion as of July 7, 2025.
Key Highlights
i..The USA remains the global billionaire capital with 902 billionaires (USD 6.8 trillion combined wealth).
ii.India overtakes Israel and Taiwan to emerge as the Number 1 source of immigrant billionaires in USA with 12 India-born billionaires up from 7 in 2022, showcasing strong Indian representation in global wealth and entrepreneurship.
iii.Taiwan showed the fastest growth, rising from 4 immigrant billionaires in 2022 to 11 in 2025.
iv.93% of the immigrant billionaires are self-made. The Technology Sector and Finance Sector contribute to about 53 immigrant billionaires (42.4%) and 28 immigrant billionaires (22.4%), respectively. Other notable sectors include Medical Devices, Aviation, Cybersecurity, Venture Capital.
Top 5 Immigrant Billionaires in USA in 2025:
| Rank | Immigrant Billionaire | Country of Origin | Net Worth (USD) | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Elon Musk | South Africa | 393.1Billion(Bn) | Tesla, SpaceX |
| 2 | Sergey Brin | Russia | 139.7 Bn | |
| 3 | Jensen Huang | Taiwan | 137.9 Bn | Semiconductors |
| 4 | Thomas Peterffy | Hungary | 67.9 Bn | Discount Brokerage |
| 5 | Miriam Adelson and Family | Israel | 33.4 Bn | Casinos |
| 8 | Jay Chaudhry | India | 17.9 Bn | Security Software |
[About Jay Chaudhry:
i.Jay Chaudhry, the richest India-born American, was born in a remote village in Himachal Pradesh(HP), India. He moved to the USA in 1980 for graduate studies and earlier launched four cybersecurity companies (SecureIT, AirDefense, CipherTrust, CoreHarbor).
ii.He founded San Jose(USA)–based cybersecurity firm Zscaler, in 2008. A decade after its launch, the company went public in 2018.
Other India-Born Billionaires in the list:
i.Vinod Khosla (Rank 17, USD 9.2 Bn) is the co-founder of Sun Microsystems. Rakesh Gangwal (Rank 29, USD 6.6 Bn) has made his wealth in the aviation sector, while Romesh T. Wadhwani (Rank 38, USD 5.0 Bn) built his fortune in software. Rajiv Jain (Rank 40, USD 4.8 Bn) is known for his success in finance.
ii.Further down the list, Kavitark Ram Shriram (Rank 64, USD 3.0 Bn) is a Google investor and venture capitalist. Raj Sardana (Rank 86, USD 2.0 bn) earned his wealth in technology services. David Paul (Rank 101, USD 1.5 Bn) made his fortune in medical devices, and Neerja Sethi (Rank 123, USD 1.0 Bn) is a prominent figure in information technology (IT) consulting.
iii.New entrants include Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai (ranked 119) and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella (ranked 120), each with a net worth of approximately USD 1.1 Bn, along with former SoftBank executive Nikesh Arora at rank 103 with USD 1.4 Bn.
Recent Related News:
In June 2025, Rebeca Grynspan, Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), officially launched the World Investment Report 2025 titled “International Investment in the Digital Economy“ in Geneva, Switzerland. As per the report, India’s Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflows declined by 1.9% in 2024, dropping from USD 28.1 billion in 2023 to USD 27.6 billion.
- India’s ranking for FDI inflows improved to 15th in 2024 from 16th in 2023, while its position for FDI outflows rose to 18th in 2024, up from 23rd the previous year. India emerged as the leading recipient of FDI within the South Asian region.
About Forbes:
Chief Executive Officer (CEO) – Sherry Phillips
Headquarters – New Jersey, the United States of America, USA
Established – 1917
