Britain’s richest people – billionaire brothers who own a huge house bought by the Queen

The newly announced Sunday Times Rich List 2022 has revealed that billionaire brothers Sri and Gopi Hinduja are the richest people in the UK – beating entrepreneurs like Dyson

Billionaire brothers Sri and Gopi Hinduja top the Sunday Times rich list for the fourth straight year.

It’s the classic rags to riches story – the family started out as a small business in Mumbai that is now said to be worth £28.472 billion.

They also own an incredible house on London’s Carlton House Terrace, close to Buckingham Palace – which was priced at £66.5million in 2006 – and have spent a further £40million on the restoration.

The incredible 60-room building is the former headquarters of the Crown Estate and was purchased by the Queen, according to Forbes.

Almost equidistant from Buckingham Palace and 10 Downing Street, the house is made up of four connected Regency houses and is home to the whole family plus 30 other relatives.

The family, who prefer to operate in secret, are now involved in several sectors including transport, communications and banking.

Get the news you want straight to your inbox. Sign up for a Mirror newsletter here

In 2019, Shanu Hinduja, daughter of Sri, spoke to highlight how bankers had created a “toxic culture” for women.

Shanu said women entrepreneurs have been frozen by a “deeply patriarchal” system that often refused to fund their ventures.

She added that mothers would be particularly penalized, as many male investors grossly doubted that they would be able to focus fully on their work if they had a young family.

Shanu, who often wears a tie to meetings, told the Times: “As a bank chair, I witness all too often the toxic culture for women in banking. We are underrepresented at all levels of the global financial system.”

Their Hinduja’s incredible empire has had a record year, according to the List of the Rich – with the largest fortunes on record in the list’s 34-year history.

Two of the four siblings, Sri, 86, and Gopi, 82, Hinduja, topped Britain’s rich list for the first time in 2015 – with the family business originally founded by their father Parmanand in 1914.

Parmanand founded the Hinduja Company in Mumbai and within five years expanded into Iran, where it remained until 1979 when the Shah was overthrown.

There he traded in carpets, tea and spices, while the family are now involved in oil and gas, energy, media and banking and own London-registered Hinduja Automotive.

The siblings, known as the “Fab Four” in India, are teetotal and vegetarian. Sri and Gopi moved to London, the third brother, Prakash, lives in Geneva and the fourth, Ashok, stays in Mumbai.

According to Zeit, London-based Gopi Hinduja is focusing on electric vehicles, while his son Dheeraj, 50, runs their Leeds-based company Switch Mobility, which is developing a new generation of zero-emission vehicles.

Previously, Gopi had spoken about her wealth: “If you think someone is rich because of their money, you are wrong.

“I consider someone rich if they have good friends, good contacts, good relationships.”

One of her ongoing projects in London is the £350m development of the Old War Office – Winston Churchill’s base during the Second World War.

The historic building will be transformed into a stunning five-star hotel, complete with a ballroom for 600 guests, a 25-metre swimming pool, a spa, two wine cellars, a rooftop bar and 88 apartments – each with five bedrooms.

The family remains one of the most powerful in world business with former President Bill Clinton and Tony Blair, George H. Bush and Margaret Thatcher among their friends.

They have shared their extraordinary wealth by funding grants, hospitals, and charitable foundations.