Bharat Desai, right, CEO and chairman of Syntel, with his co-workers at the Nasdaq stock exchange on Aug.23 to mark the seventh anniversary of firm’s IPO. (Photo, as it appears on www.syntelinc.com)

Bharat Desai, chief executive and chairman of Syntel, a Nasdaq-listed computer and data services company, has been named the richest small business entrepreneur in the U.S. by Fortune magazine.

Desai’s total ownership value in the company has been estimated at $550 million.

With its headquarters in Troy, Michigan, Syntel was co-founded by Desai, who has a master’s in business administration from the University of Michigan, with a savings of $2,000 in 1980 along with Neerja Sethi, now its vice president.

The company provides customized outsourcing solutions in IT and related services and has over 4,000 employees in 23 locations including Chennai, Mumbai and Pune.