Ananda Krishnan-Malaysian businessman

Tatparanandam Ananda Krishnan ( born 1938) is a Malaysian businessman and philanthropist of Sri Lankan Tamil origin. Nicknamed TAK, he is currently estimated to have a net worth of US$7.4 billion according to Forbes' latest annual list of billionaires, making him the third wealthiest man in Southeast Asia behind Robert Kuok and Ng Teng Fong and number 119 in the world. Ananda Krishnan is also the wealthiest Tamil in the world, ahead of Shiv Nadar, who is the 10th richest man in India.

Ananda Krishnan shuns public exposure  and is known to maintain a low profile for a person of his stature.

Ananda Krishnan was born in 1938 in Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur's to Tamil parents of Sri Lankan origin. His family originates from Jaffn, Sri Lanka.

He studied at Vivekananda Tamil School in Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur and furthered his studies at Victoria Institution, Kuala Lumpur. Later, as a Colombo Plan scholar, he attended the University of Melbourne, Australia for his B.A. (Honours) degree majoring in political science. During that time he boarded in the Melbourne suburb of Hawthorn. Following that, Krishnan obtained a Masters in Business Administration at Harvard University, graduating in 1964.

Krishnan’s first entrepreneurial venture was in oil trading. He set up Exoil Trading, which went on to purchase oil drilling concessions in various countries. Later, he moved into gambling (in Malaysia). In the early part of the 1990s, he started diversifying into the multimedia arena.

Currently, he has business interests in entertainment, satellite television (Astro, space (MEASAT), shipping (Bumi Armada), telecommunications (Maxis, Aircel). Through the privately owned Usaha Tegas Sdn. Bhd., he owns stakes in Tanjong Public Limited Company, an investment holding company with subsidiaries involved in Power Generation (Powertek), Gaming (Pan Malaysian Pools), Leisure (Tropical Island and Tanjong Golden Village (TGV)) and Property Investment (Menara Maxis).

Recently he was linked to a buyout of English Premier League club Newcastle United. Malaysian Youth and Sports minister Datuk Ahmad Shabery Cheek hailed the potential bid "a huge transaction" for Malaysia, adding: "It’s not impossible, and it's a very good deal for Ananda. I hope it can have a big impact on the development of Malaysian football."  A few days later, Ananda denied these claims in the Malaysian Press.