Malaysian Tamil businessman and philanthropist Ananda Krishnan has an estimated net worth of $5.61 billion as of March 2017, according to Bloomberg. Currently, he is the second richest person in Southeast Asia after Robert Kuok and #82 in Forbes Billionaires List. Nicknamed AK, he was born Tatparanandam Ananda Krishnan on April 1, 1938 in Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia to Tamil parents who were Sri Lankan immigrants. He studied at Vivekananda Tamil School in Brickfields and continued his studies at Victoria Institution in Kuala Lumpur. As a Colombo Plan holder, he attended the University of Melbourne in Australia for his B.A. in political science (with honors). He then obtained his MBA at Harvard University and graduated in 1964.

Krishnan started his entrepreneurial career in a Malaysian consultancy MAI Holdings Sdn Bhd. He then expanded into oil drilling and launched his own company, Exoil Trading. He later moved to gambling in Malaysia and became part of the team that organized “Live Aid” in the 80s. He started a sizeable multimedia presence in the early part of the 1990s. Since then, he has controlled two major telecommunication companies, Maxis Communications and MEASAT Broadcast Network Systems.

Ananda Krishnan currently has business interests in media (Astro, Johnston Press Plc), satellite (MEASAT), oil and gas (Bumi Armada, Pexco), telecommunications (Maxis, Aircel, Axis, Sri Lanka Telecom). He also owns stakes in Tanjong Public Limited Company, an investment holding company with subsidiaries involved in power generation (Powertek), gaming (Pan Malaysian Pools), leisure (Tropical Islands, TGV Cinemas) and property. He is the Chairman and CEO of Usaha Tegas Group Holdings and TAK Corporate Holdings. He is well-known for his philanthropic work with schools throughout Malaysia yet he shuns public exposure and maintains a low profile.