Every tech billionaire in India takes hit from Trump visa reform

BANGALORE (April 12): It’s hard to overstate the importance of the technology industry to India. Over the past three decades, the IT sector has helped drive the country’s economic growth, employed millions and made billionaires out of at least seven founders.

Now the industry is at risk from US President Donald Trump’s policies. The administration is promising a clampdown on the work visas India’s tech services companies use to service American customers. In the days since the US government took first steps toward visa reform, all of India’s highest-profile technology tycoons have seen their net worth eroded.

Azim Premji, chairman of Wipro Ltd. and India’s fifth-richest man, and Shiv Nadar, the sixth-richest person in the country and chairman of HCL Technologies, have seen their shares slide. Narayana Murthy, Nandan Nilekani and three other founders of Infosys Ltd., all among the top 100 of India’s richest billionaires, have taken a hit too. IT stocks have dropped about 3% over that stretch, while the benchmark index has climbed 0.6%.

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