Noel Tata Takes Over Powerful Charity Arm Of Tata Group

Photo: Reuters/Francis Mascarenhas

NEW DELHI, (REUTERS) – The half-brother of Ratan Tata was appointed on October 11 as the head of the powerful and influential philanthropic arm of India’s Tata group, giving him indirect control of the $165 billion conglomerate.

Tata Trusts said Noel Tata, 67, will be its new chairman after the death this week of Ratan Tata, one of India’s best-known corporate titans. The decision followed “many old timers” in the group wanting him to lead the venture, said one Tata executive.

The parent company, Tata Sons, oversees 30 firms across consumer goods, hotels, automobiles and airlines and has become a global juggernaut over the years, with brands such as Jaguar Land Rover and Tetley Tea in its stable.

It owns Tata Consultancy Services, Taj Hotels and Air India and counts Starbucks and Airbus as partners in India.

Tata Trusts has a 66% ownership of Tata Sons, giving it power over big investment, philanthropic and strategic decisions by the conglomerate, company executives say.

Noel Tata, who is half-French, was already among the many trustees of the philanthropic arm, and vice chairman of Tata Steel and chairman of Tata’s popular retail fashion brand Trent.

He has kept a low profile, so the outer world doesn’t know him well, but he is quintessential Tata, one person who knows him said.

The trust earns dividends from Tata Sons but has no direct say over its operations. However, it appoints a third of the directors to Tata Sons who have veto power overboard decisions.

The chairman of Tata Trusts “is powerful enough to decide board and key personnel” appointments at Tata Sons, a second senior company executive said.

While Tata Sons is not compelled to seek advice or guidance from the philanthropic arm, it’s an “unsaid understanding” that there is consultation between leadership on both sides, an executive added.

Noel’s Journey

The Tata group was set up in 1868 by Ratan’s great grandfather, Jamsetji Tata.

A few years later, Jamsetji started charity work that has since expanded into sectors such as healthcare and sports, through many of the trusts in the philanthropic arm.

Ratan Tata started working at the family firm in 1962 and became the chairman of Tata Sons in 1991, taking the group to new heights while gaining a reputation as an extremely shy, soft-spoken executive with sharp business acumen.

Noel Tata is a graduate of Sussex University who has been associated with the group for more than 40 years. He serves on the board of various Tata companies.

As a previous managing director of Tata International, Noel grew the turnover of the trading arm to more than $3 billion from $500 million, a Tata Group website said.

Although the trusts’ influence over the group is not often on display, the starkest such example was in 2016, when Ratan Tata had a falling out with Tata Sons chairman Cyrus Mistry that led to the latter’s ouster.

Mistry, another Parsi billionaire whose family owns a stake of about 18% in Tata Sons, died in a car accident in 2022.

Noel is an Irish citizen married to Mistry’s sister.