A day after the death of India’s most globally-recognised tycoon Ratan Tata, his half-brother Noel Tata has been named as the new chairperson of Tata Trusts, the group has announced.
Tata Trusts is the company’s philanthropic arm which holds a majority stake of 66% in Tata Sons – one of India’s largest business groups, with annual revenues in excess of $100bn (£76.5bn).
Noel Tata, 67, is the son of Naval Tata, who was also Ratan’s father, and Simone Tata.
He is on the boards of many Tata companies, including Tata Trusts, and will now step up to lead its charities.
He is the chairman of Tata International Limited, Voltas and Tata Investment Corporation and the vice-chairman at Tata Steel and Titan Company Limited.
He also heads Tata’s massive apparel retail company, Trent Limited, which has seen tremendous growth since he took its leadership in 2014.
The company operates hugely successful fashion and lifestyle retail formats such as Westside, Zudio and Utsa.
From 2010 to 2021, Noel Tata ran the group’s global trading and distribution firm – Tata International – whose revenue rose from $500m to over $3bn during this time.
On Friday, Tata Trusts in a release said it had unanimously elected Noel Tata as its chairman.
Noel Tata said he was “deeply honoured and humbled” by the opportunity and that he looked forward to carrying forward the legacy of his brother.
“On this solemn occasion, we rededicate ourselves to carrying on our developmental and philanthropic initiatives and continuing to play our part in nation building,” he said, according to the release.
Noel Tata’s three children are also trustees on the boards of some charities linked to the family.
His son Neville is head of Star Bazaar, the group’s chain of retail supermarkets. His daughter Leah Tata is in charge of the Gateway brand under its The Indian Hotels Company. His other daughter, Maya Tata, works at Tata Digital.
Ratan Tata was unmarried, had no children and had not publicly named a successor and his death had sparked widespread interest in who would take over the Tata Trusts as his successor.
In 2012, he stepped down as the chairman of Tata Sons, handing over the reins to Cyrus Mistry. In 2016, Mistry was unexpectedly removed and Tata returned as interim chairman for a couple of years. In 2017, N Chandrasekaran was named chairman, a post he still holds.
Ratan Tata then became chairman emeritus of the group, a title he held until his death. He also remained chairman of the philanthropic arm until the end.