Nepal's First Billionaire Binod Chaudhary

Trailblazing entrepreneur, industrialist, philanthropist, visionary and true friend of Sri Lanka, Binod Chaudhary, is an institution in himself. The first and only billionaire from Nepal listed in the Forbes list, Binod Chaudhary was inspired by his industrious father and always dreamed of becoming a very big industrialist in Nepal. His company the Chaudhary  Group is the biggest transnational conglomerate in Nepal. Today the Chaudhary Group consists of nearly 80 companies spanning 5 continents with 60 brands in more than 30 countries. An inspiring visionary Binod Chaudhary is a follower of his gut instinct. This led him to investing in Sri Lanka when the country was in flames and now he is reaping the dividends in terms of friendship and finances.

- Tina Edward Gunawardhana

How did Wai Wai come about?

Many people think it was a business that came about after much planning, but it was none of that. We had a biscuit factory and a flour mill and we realised that we could barely consume 10% of the production. During my travels I noticed lots of Thai noodle products being brought in to Nepal and then I realised that perhaps we should start making noodles. I approached the company in Thailand that was making the noodles but they deterred me from opening a factory saying that it would be of no use but somehow my gut told me to go ahead anyway. Which I did and the rest, as they say, is history. From producing 30,000 noodle packets a day we now make a million packets a day and import it to neighboring countries. Wai Wai took our group and our vision to the next level.

How did you get involved in the hotel industry?