Akhil Gupta retired as the chairman of Blackstone India in December 2014. He joined The Blackstone Group as senior managing director in 2005 and started its operations in India. Today, Blackstone India is one of the leading players in real estate and corporate private equity in India.
Before joining Blackstone, Akhil served as CEO–Corporate Development, for Reliance Industries Limited. Akhil’s efforts at Reliance were focused on developing Reliance’s E&P, refining, and telecom businesses from scratch. Akhil was the founding CEO of all three businesses.
Akhil began his career in 1973 with Hindustan Unilever, which was then India’s largest multinational corporation. From 1981 to 1992 he worked in the United States, first with ICF International in Washington, D.C., where he became a partner at the firm, and then as chief financial officer of two integrated retailers and manufacturers of furniture in California.
Akhil received his MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business in 1981, and a B.Tech degree in chemical engineering in 1973 from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, which conferred on him the Distinguished Alumni Award in 2004.
Akhil has served on over a dozen company boards, including boards of several Blackstone portfolio companies, and Reliance group companies. Currently, he serves on the board of Larsen & Toubro Limited, and Hindustan Power Projects Private Limited.
Akhil serves on the Stanford GSB Advisory Council, and on the Dean’s Leadership Council at Harvard Divinity School.
Akhil is one of the founding members of Asia Society (India Chapter) and a partner in The Acumen Fund. He has been at Harvard University since 2015 as a senior fellow/guest.