Pankaj Oswal
Pankaj Oswal is an Indian-Swiss[1] businessman with a portfolio encompassing petrochemicals, real estate, fertilisers, and mining.
Career
[edit]Pankaj is the son of Abhay Kumar Oswal, founder of Oswal Agro Mills and Oswal Greentech. He grew up in India and studied at Mayo College in Ajmer and the Manipal Institute of Technology. After graduating, he worked in several of his father's enterprises.[2]
In 2001, Oswal arrived in Perth, Australia and founded Burrup Holdings Limited,[3] a fertiliser company. In 2006, the company opened a liquid ammonia plant on the Burrup Peninsula, establishing itself as one of the world's largest liquid ammonia production companies.[4] In 2010, Burrup Holdings collapsed and entered receivership amidst controversy.[5] In 2011, Oswal sold his majority stake in the company to ANZ Bank.[6] It would later exit receivership and be renamed Yara Pilbara after it was taken over by minor stakeholder Yara International.[7]
As of 2023, Oswal has a business portfolio encompassing petrochemicals, real estate, fertilisers, and mining, and has a reported net worth of over US$3 billion.[1]
Personal life
[edit]Pankaj's brother is singer and businessman Shael Oswal, and his sister Shallu is married to industrialist and politician Naveen Jindal; their father Abhay died in 2016.[8] Pankaj has been married to Radhika Oswal since 1997; the couple has two daughters, Vasundhara and Ridi.[9]
Following the collapse of Burrup Holdings, the Oswal family moved from Perth to Dubai.[6] Since 2013, the Oswals have lived in Switzerland.[1]
Controversies
[edit]Lawsuits
[edit]ANZ Bank
[edit]Following the collapse of Burrup Holdings in 2010 and the company entering receivership, in competing legal claims over billions of dollars, Pankaj and his wife and their bank, ANZ Bank attacked each other.[5][10]
The couple had been accused of embezzling upwards of AUD$150 million from Burrup Holdings to fund a lifestyle of private jets, yachts and luxury cars, as well as to establish a vegetarian restaurant chain and build a luxury home for their family in Perth.[5] In a counter claim, the Oswals had accused ANZ staff of acting in a bigoted manner towards them, emphasising their background as Indian nationals.[11] They had also claimed ANZ's former chief risk officer Chris Page had used physical force by putting Mr. Oswal in a headlock to force them to sign a guarantee over their shares that led to the forced sale of their stake.[11] ANZ chief legal counsel was also accused of telling Mrs. Oswal they would report the alleged embezzlement and she and her husband would go to jail and their children would be orphans if they did not sign the guarantee.[11] They also claimed ANZ breached its fiduciary duty when selling Burrup Holdings.[12]
In August 2016, the parties settled their lawsuits over the Burrup Holdings business. ANZ paid an undisclosed amount said to be hundreds of millions of dollars to Mr. and Mrs. Oswal for taking over Burrup Holdings without giving due consideration; ANZ's claim that the Oswals misappropriated funds was also dropped.[10][11]
Other
[edit]During their legal battle with ANZ, the couple also faced suits by a number of creditors including the Australian Taxation Office and the Shire of Peppermint Grove, which were also settled in 2016.[6][13] That same year, Oswal was also involved in a legal clash against his brother and the rest of his family over his father's inheritance.[8]
In 2020, the couple sued Swiss boarding school Institut Le Rosey over alleged bullying against their daughter.[14]
"Taj on Swan"
[edit]In 2006, the Oswals bought a 6,582m² block of land overlooking the Swan River in the Perth suburb of Peppermint Grove for AUD$22 million, with the intention of building a luxury home for their family. The home, which would have included a private gym, beauty salon, observatory with a revolving roof, parking for 17 cars and a large swimming pool, featured an Indian-inspired architectural style, leading it to be nicknamed "Taj on Swan" in reference to the Taj Mahal. With an estimated worth of AUD$70 million, it would have been the most expensive house in Australia.[6]
Following the collapse of Burrup Holdings in 2010, the Oswals left Australia, leaving the partially constructed home unfinished and abandoned. After two failed attempts to sell the incomplete home, over the next several years the property attracted squatters and vandals, and the deteriorating structure was dubbed an eyesore by neighbours. After years of legal objections by the Oswals, the unfinished building was eventually demolished in 2016, with the land sold in 2018.[7][6][13]
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 "Meet Pankaj and Radhika Oswal, the couple who bought one of the world's most expensive houses". Financial Express. 18 June 2023. Retrieved 3 August 2026.
- ↑ ASIA Major Manufacturers. Business Information Agency. p. 220 item 4003. ISBN 978-1-4187-8517-8. Retrieved 4 January 2012.
- ↑ "Burrup Fertilisers Ammonia Plant". Chemical Technology.
- ↑ "About Burrup Holdings Ltd". Ibisworld.com.au. 31 March 2009. Retrieved 4 January 2012.
- 1 2 3 "Fertiliser tycoon Pankaj Oswal siphoned off $150m in company funds, court hears". The Guardian. Australian Associated Press. 14 June 2016.
- 1 2 3 4 5 Wahlquist, Calla (24 October 2015). "Money, young marriage and a condemned mansion: the curious case of Perth's Taj-on-Swan". The Guardian.
- 1 2 "Taj on the Swan". Streetkid Industries.
- 1 2 "Singer Shael breaks silence on Oswal family feud over inheritance". India Today. 24 July 2016. Archived from the original on 28 August 2021. Retrieved 8 August 2026.
- ↑ Victoria Laurie (7 June 2008). "Meet the Oswals". The Australian. Retrieved 4 January 2012.
- 1 2 "Oswals 'very satisfied' after settling billion dollar legal case with ANZ". The Guardian. Australian Associated Press. 22 September 2016.
- 1 2 3 4 Danckert, Sarah (18 August 2016). "Oswals, ANZ agree to in principle settlement". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 19 August 2016.
- ↑ Wahlquist, Calla (30 May 2016). "Lawyers at 20 paces as ANZ faces $2.5bn claim from Indian socialite couple". The Guardian.
- 1 2 Collard, Sarah (29 July 2018). "Perth's Taj on Swan land passed in at auction as bids fall short of reserve price". ABC News.
- ↑ "Institut Le Rosey: Billionaires sue world's most expensive school over bullying claims". NewsComAu. 4 May 2020. Retrieved 6 August 2026.