Barclays targets India’s billionaires as private banking competition intensifies

Barclays Plc is seeking deeper ties with India’s billionaire founders as it looks to expand in the country’s fast-growing and highly competitive , where global rivals are also stepping up.

With wealth hubs across London, Dubai, Singapore and Europe, Barclays is betting on its international network and capital-markets capabilities to cater to ultra-rich Indians with businesses and assets across multiple jurisdictions, according to Annabelle Bryde, head of the firm’s Private Bank International. “That, for us, is a high-priority area,” she said in an interview.

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The lender, having worked with India’s rich since 2008, is focusing on the top 1% of the country’s wealthy, and aiming for double-digit business growth over the next few years, London-based Bryde said.

The strategy pits Barclays against established international private banks of Standard Chartered Plc and HSBC Holdings Plc, which have built sizeable franchises serving India’s wealthy, as well as firms founded by senior bankers. Competition for talent is also pushing pay for relationship managers to record highs.

The move by Barclays comes as the number of ultra-rich in India is growing exponentially. The country had about 207 billionaires in 2025, the third-highest tally after the U.S. and China, according to Knight Frank’s Wealth Report. That number is projected to rise to 313 by 2031. The South Asian nation also had about 19,877 ultra-high-net-worth individuals with more than $30 million in wealth.

“I want to see more investments, growth across all the categories we work in, and increased penetration with India’s top promoters,” Bryde said. Barclays’ wealth business in India ranked 10th by size, with $23.8 billion in assets under management as of the end of 2025, up 7.3% from a year earlier, according to Asian Private Banker rankings. Its closest global peers in the country include Julius Baer Group Ltd. and Standard Chartered.

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During a reorganization, Nitin Singh, Barclays’ head of wealth business for India and Singapore departed in 2025, and both countries were brought under an international structure. Elsewhere, Standard Chartered has lost several senior executives over the past year, while Julius Baer’s India Chief Executive Officer Umang Papneja resigned in May.

As Indian corporates expand domestically and overseas, business founders are monetizing assets and growing their personal wealth. “There are a lot of liquidity events, including IPOs and M&A activity, across businesses. And that trend is going to continue,” Adrish Ghosh, head of Barclays private bank for India, said.