Celebrity Net Worth: Virat Kohli profits from India’s IPO boom

In our fortnightly celebrity investment and wealth round-up, Sylvester Stallone’s $6 million watch collection goes to auction and Will Smith unveils new team in electric raceboat league

Royal Challengers Bangalore's Virat Kohli celebrates after scoring a century against Gujarat Titans in the IPL clash at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium on May 21, 2023. AFP

RCB's Virat Kohli is congratulated by Gujarat Titans' Rashid Khan after reaching a century. AFP

RCB's Virat Kohli scored 101 off 61 balls, but it wasn't enough to prevent his team losing by six-wickets to Gujarat Titans. AFP

Virat Kohli's century for RCB included 13 fours and one six. AFP

RCB's Virat Kohli celebrates reaching his fifty. AP

Virat Kohli scored centuries in successive games for Royal Challengers Bangalore. AFP

RCB's Virat Kohli scored his seventh IPL century - a new IPL record. AP

RCB's Virat Kohli became the third IPL player to score centuries in successive matches. AFP

Virat Kohli's Royal Challengers Bangalore were knocked out of the IPL following the defeat to Gujarat. AP

RCB's Virat Kohli watches after playing a shot against Gujarat Titans. AP

Indian cricketer Virat Kohli’s strategic investment in Go Digit General Insurance has paid off, after the Indian company joined the country's initial public offering boom and listed on the National Stock Exchange on May 23.

Kohli, 35, and Indian actress Anushka Sharma, his wife, invested in the Fairfax-backed general insurance company, which provides motor, health, travel and other insurance products, in February 2020, according to the red herring prospectus filed by Go Digit.

The batsman acquired about 266,667 shares in the company, while Sharma owns 66,667. Both acquired the shares for 75 Indian rupees ($0.90) each.

Go Digit’s shares listed at 286 rupees on Thursday, which represents a premium of 5.14 per cent over the issue price of 272 rupees.

With shares trading at 300 rupees when the market closed on Friday, the value of Kohli’s stake surged from 20 million rupees to more than 80 million.

The value of his wife’s investment also increased from 5 million rupees to about 20 million rupees.

Kohli has a net worth of $126 million, according to Indian newspaper Financial Express.

He has 268 million followers on Instagram alone, along with 63.2 million on Twitter and 51 million on Facebook.

As the third most popular sportsperson on Instagram behind Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, his extensive social media reach attracts the attention of advertisers.

He has also been retained by Indian Premier League team Royal Challengers Bangalore for 170 million rupees per season, according to India’s Mint newspaper.

The cricketer owns properties across India, including residences and commercial spaces.

In Mumbai, he owns an apartment in Worli, estimated to be worth about 340 million rupees. He also owns a house in Gurugram, acquired in 2015 for 800 million rupees, according to Financial Express.

Kohli launched a charity foundation in 2013 that assists disadvantaged kids. He also co-owns the Indian Super League club FC Goa, the International Premier Tennis League franchise UAE Royals and the Pro Wrestling League franchise Bengaluru Yodhas, according to wealth tracking website Celebrity Net Worth.

US actor and filmmaker Sylvester Stallone is putting his watch collection worth $6 million up for auction at Sotheby’s next month. Photo: Sotheby's / PA

Sylvester Stallone

US actor and filmmaker Sylvester Stallone is putting his watch collection worth $6 million up for auction at Sotheby’s next month.

The crown jewel of the collection is a Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime, one of the rarest and most expensive watches ever made, according to Celebrity Net Worth.

Another Grandmaster Chime set the record for the most expensive watch of all time when it sold for $31 million, while Stallone's Chime cost $2.5 million, the report said.

“The one thing that is pervasive throughout all these watches is that they attract me emotionally. It’s not about keeping time, it’s about keeping in step with where you are in life,” Stallone told Sotheby’s.

In addition to the Grandmaster Chime, the 77-year-old actor is selling two other Patek Philippe pieces: a Nautilus reference 5711/1300A-001 from 2021 said to be worth $200,000 to $400,000, and another Nautilus worth between $50,000 and $100,000, Celebrity Net Worth reported.

Stallone is also letting go of four watches from Panerai. The Panerai Reference PAM00382 Luminor Submersible 1950 being auctioned featured in The Expendables 2 and the winning bidder will also receive a signed film poster.

The cheapest watch in the collection is a gold Piaget Polo Grande, with an estimated value between $6,000 and $12,000, the report said.

The auction is set to commence on June 5.

Stallone has a net worth of $400 million and his wealth is derived principally from his earnings as an actor and producer. He has earned $300 million in base film salaries between the 1970s and 2012.

His films have earned more than $4.5 billion, making him one of the highest-grossing actors of all time, alongside Tom Cruise, Robert Downey Jr, Harrison Ford and Arnold Schwarzenegger.

In 2022, Stallone starred in US crime drama series Tulsa King, earning $1 million per episode, according to Variety magazine. The series has been renewed for a second season.

As a producer, he formed Balboa Productions with Braden Aftergood in 2018.

Outside of real estate, the actor was one of several celebrities to invest in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, according to investor platform CB Insights.

For the past few decades, Stallone's primary residence has been an opulent 20,000-square-foot mansion in Beverly Hills. In December 2021, he sold it for $58 million to Adele.

He has also bought and sold a number of properties in recent years, including homes in Beverly Hills and La Quinta, both in California, as well as two houses in Florida.

Will Smith is the latest celebrity to invest in the UIM E1 World Championship. Pawan Singh / The National

Will Smith

Will Smith has become the latest celebrity to invest in the UIM E1 World Championship, which is the first all-electric raceboat league.

He unveiled a new team called Westbrook Racing, named after his global entertainment company. The value of his investment was not disclosed.

The Hollywood actor joins the likes of Tom Brady, Rafael Nadal and Kohli as an investor in the E1 electric powerboat championship, according to media company Sportspromedia.

Other celebrity investors include DJ Steve Aoki and singer-songwriter Marc Anthony.

Smith, who is one of the world’s most famous actors and has 66.7 million followers on Instagram, has a net worth of $350 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth.

“As a fan of racing, the opportunity to be part of the E1 fleet and play a role in realising its broader vision got me very inspired,” said Smith.

The Championship features nine teams that compete against one another in races at global cities, including Jeddah, Monaco and Hong Kong.

“Will Smith is simply one of the most famous names on the planet. He’s shown throughout his career he is a born winner, so we are incredibly excited to see how this transitions to racing on the water,” said Rodi Basso, chief executive and co-founder of E1, said.

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Smith, 55, is estimated to earn between $40 million and $80 million a year from film and production endeavours, according to Celebrity Net Worth.

At the peak of his career in the 2000s, he earned $20 million to $30 million per film.

For his work on the biographical sports drama King Richard, Smith earned $20 million upfront and an additional $40 million in the equivalent of movie ticket back-end points.

As of 2023, Smith's films have grossed more than $9.3 billion worldwide.

He has a significant investment portfolio, including several financial companies. Through Dreams VC, Smith has invested in 28 start-ups, according to investor information website Pitchbook.

Among them are financial software company Fractional and Ethereum blockchain scaling platform Boba Network. He and Nas Daily content creator Nuseir Yassin have both reportedly also invested in teenage financial literacy app Step.

He also joined Jared Leto last year in a $70 million series B funding round for neobank Karat.

Together with his wife, Jada Pinkett-Smith, Smith owns more than $100 million in real estate, including properties in California, Utah and Hawaii, according to Celebrity Net Worth.

Sir Paul McCartney has become the first British musician to become a billionaire, according to The Sunday Times. AP

Sir Paul McCartney

Sir Paul McCartney has become the first British musician to become a billionaire, according to an annual list released by The Sunday Times.

The Sunday Times Rich List calculated that the wealth of the 81-year-old musician and his wife, Nancy Shevell, had grown by £50 million ($63.7 million) since last year thanks to McCartney’s 2023 Got Back tour, the rising value of his back catalogue and Beyonce’s cover of The Beatles’ Blackbird on her Cowboy Carter album.

The musician took to his Instagram to share a message praising the cover featured on Beyonce's album alongside a black-and-white photo of the singers together.

“I am so happy with [Beyonce's] version of my song Blackbird,” he wrote.

“I think she does a magnificent version of it and it reinforces the civil rights message that inspired me to write the song in the first place. I think Beyonce has done a fab version and would urge anyone who has not heard it yet to check it out. You are going to love it!”

The McCartneys’ net worth has been steadily climbing for the past six years, according to data from The Times, rising from about £750 million in 2018.

As ranked by The Times Music Rich List, Andrew Lloyd Webber takes second place with £515 million, while Mick Jagger follows with £415 million.

Other entertainment figures on the list include Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling, whose fortune is estimated at £945 million, and singer Elton John, estimated to be worth £470 million.

The list has a minimum wealth entry of £350 million.

McCartney owns at least $100 million worth of real estate around the world, according to Celebrity Net Worth.