There is a saying that behind every successful man is a strong woman. This is an old diatribe that has sexist roots as these days, most woman are the success and do not stand behind a man.
However, in the case of the newly elected British prime minister, Rishi Sunak, the saying may be pertinent as not much is known about his extremely wealthy wife and business leader Akshata Murty who seems to stay out of the public eye.
Here are 5 things you should know about Murty:
RAISED BY HER GRANDPARENTS
Murty grew up in India and was essentially raised by her paternal grandparents. Her mom and dad were busy building technology company, Infosys. Murty’s father is Indian billionaire NR Narayana Murthy and, according to Forbes, is worth $4.5 billion (about R83bn).
HER MOM WAS A PIONEER
Her mom is a success in her own right. Sudha Murty is an engineer and was the first female engineer to work for the TATA Engineering and Locomotive Company, according to her biography.
Sudha Murty is a major philanthropist in India and, in 2006, was given the Padma Shri for social work. The award is the fourth-highest civilian award in India.
A GOOD EDUCATION
Like most Indian parents, Murty’s family pushed their children to excel at school. Murty attended the private liberal arts college, Claremont McKenna College, in the US. She has a diploma in clothes manufacturing from the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising, according to the Telegraph.
It was when she was studying for her Master’s in business administration at Stanford University that she met Sunak.
FASHION AND VENTURE CAPITALISM
After her studies, Murty worked at a tech company but soon left to start her own fashion line, Akshata Designs. While speaking to Vogue India in 2001, Murty said she wanted to showcase local craft designs on a global scale in a modern-contemporary way. The label closed after three years, according to the Guardian.
After the failure of her fashion brand, Murty joined her father’s venture capital firm, Catamaran Ventures. Her husband would also work at the firm during his early business career. He transferred his stock to his wife when he became a member of parliament. The firm is still operating and, according to the company, manages “more than $1 billion across asset classes”.
WHERE THE MONEY COMES FROM
It should be noted that Murty owns a 0.91% stake in Infosys, her dad’s company, and in 2022, this was estimated to be worth $900 million.
According to an April article of the Guardian, this makes Murty richer than the late Queen Elizabeth who was valued at £365m.
She does not derive all her income from her stake in Infosys. Murty also has shares in two restaurants that belong to renowned chef and TV personality Jamie Oliver.
Her other ventures include shares in Wendy's in India, Koro Kids and Digme Fitness, according to the Guardian.
Because of her immense wealth, in its annual rich list for 2022, the UK’s Sunday Times named Sunak and Murty the 222nd wealthiest people in the UK.
BUSINESS REPORT