Arif Naqvi

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Vanisaac (talk | contribs) at 20:58, 24 August 2022 (rm empty deprecated/unsupported parameters, removed: | networth = , | Residence =). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Arif Masood Naqvi
Born
Arif Masood Naqvi

(1960-07-13) 13 July 1960 (age 63)
Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan
CitizenshipPakistan
Saint Kitts and Nevis[1]
Alma materKarachi Grammar School
London School of Economics
OccupationBusiness

Arif Masood Naqvi (born 13 July 1960 in Karachi, Pakistan) is a Pakistani businessman, who was the founder and chief executive of the Dubai-based private equity firm, The Abraaj Group and Aman Foundation. The Abraaj Group was founded in 2002 and operated in Africa, Asia, Latin America, Middle East, Turkey and Central Asia.

Early life and education

Naqvi was born in a business family. His father was a small plastics manufacturing company owner.[2] He completed his early education from Karachi Grammar School and graduated from London School of Economics.[3]

Career

Arif Naqvi began his career with Arthur Andersen in London and American Express in Karachi. In the early 1990s, he joined the Olayan Group in Saudi Arabia, the Kingdom's largest trading company. In 1994 he started an investment firm in Dubai called Cupola with $50,000 of his own savings.[4] In 1999, Naqvi purchased Inchcape Middle East, for $102 million, with $4.1 million in equity, making it the MENA region's first leveraged buyout.[5] Naqvi then sold off pieces of the company for a total of $173 million.[6]

In 2002, Naqvi founded Abraaj Capital, and in 2012 the company merged with Aureos Capital to become The Abraaj Group. As of March 2018, Arif Naqvi has stepped down as CEO of The Abraaj Group, as the Company has become the subject of multiple investigations regarding its fund management practices.[7]

Naqvi is known as a collector of art and for establishing a collection of Middle Eastern art.[8] In 2018, art owned by Naqvi was sold through Christie's for £2 million.[9]

Allegations, Criminal charges and legal issues

In 2018, Naqvi was accused by investors of misappropriating funds, leading to the provisional liquidation of The Abraaj Group.[10] The company also came under investigation by regulators in Dubai.[11][12]

Also in October 2018, the Wall Street Journal published an article that Abraaj Group allegedly paid US$20 million to Pakistani businessman, Navaid Malik, for his assistance in securing cooperation of Sharif brothers for the sale of its investment in Pakistan's utility, Karachi Electric.[13]

On 5 April 2019, Naqvi was arrested by authorities in the United Kingdom after he was charged by the United States Department of Justice with fraud, misleading investors and misappropriating $230 million from a healthcare fund.[14] In early May 2019, Naqvi was granted bail by a London court pending a hearing for his extradition to the United States, with restrictions including a record £15 million GBP (US$20 million) surety and other conditions amounting to effective house arrest.[15]

In July 2019, two Abraaj entities were fined US$315 million by the Dubai Financial Services Authority and Naqvi was sentenced to three years imprisonment in absentia in the United Arab Emirates on charges of financial fraud.[16][17][18]

In November 2021, High Court Judge Philippa Whipple adjourned the matter Naqvi extradition until a point of law was resolved in another similar high-profile extradition case - that of Nirav Modi, an Indian diamond tycoon.[19]

In January 2022, the Dubai Financial Services Authority personally fined Naqvi $135.6 million for his role in the collapse of Abraaj.[20]

In July 2022, the Financial Times revealed in its article results of its investigation that Abraaj founder Arif Naqvi’s Cayman Islands-incorporated company Wootton Cricket Ltd bankrolled Pakistan's political party, Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) which is led by former Prime Minister Imran Khan during 2013, after receiving funds from companies and individuals including at least £2 million in April 2013 from Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak al-Nahyan, a United Arab Emirates government minister who is also a member of the Abu Dhabi royal family and Chairman of Pakistan's Bank Alfalah.[21]

Philanthropy

In 2008, Naqvi and his family established the Aman Foundation, a local, not-for-profit trust in Pakistan, focusing on health, nutrition and education.[22]

Awards

In 2007, Naqvi was granted the Sitara-i-Imtiaz by the Government of Pakistan, in recognition of his outstanding service in the field of public services.[23] In 2015, Naqvi was awarded with the BNP Paribas Grand Prix for Individual Philanthropy by BNP Paribas.[24]

Naqvi is a founding commissioner of the Business & Sustainable Development Commission (BSDC), alongside Paul Polman and Mo Ibrahim.[25]

References

  1. ^ "Former Abraaj CEO Denied Bail After Being Called Flight Risk". Bloomberg. 26 April 2019. Retrieved 24 July 2019.
  2. ^ Tirmizi, Farooq (November 5, 2018). "The heir to Agha Hasan Abedi". Profit by Pakistan Today.
  3. ^ "Arif Naqvi". www.theamanfoundation.org.
  4. ^ MacBride, Elizabeth (23 November 2015). "The Story Behind Abraaj Group's Stunning Rise In Global Private Equity". Forbes. Retrieved 25 September 2017.
  5. ^ Hamdan, Sara (27 April 2011). "Mideast Private Equity Pioneer Looks Beyond the Unrest". The New York Times. Retrieved 25 September 2017.
  6. ^ Tirmizi, Farooq (5 November 2018). "The heir to Agha Hasan Abedi". Pakistan Today. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
  7. ^ Kane, Frank (31 May 2018). "Dubai should get a grip on Abraaj before somebody else does". Arab News. Retrieved 7 May 2019.
  8. ^ Gleadell, Colin (2018-10-30). "What the sale of one man's multi-million dollar collection tells us about Middle Eastern art today". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2019-10-19.
  9. ^ Gleadell, Colin (2019-10-15). "Twenty pieces of art belonging to controversial banker for sale at up to £1.6m". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2019-10-19.
  10. ^ Alloway, Tracy; Nair, Dinesh; Martin, Matthew (14 June 2018). "The Downfall of Dubai's Star Investor". Bloomberg Businessweek.
  11. ^ Arnold, Tom; Cornwell, Alexander (4 July 2018). "Dubai regulator probes Abraaj over alleged mismanagement". Reuters. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
  12. ^ Warde, Ibrahim (November 2019). "A firm too good to be true, Billion-dollar debts, family pay-offs". Le Monde diplomatique.
  13. ^ Clark, Simon (16 October 2018). "Private-Equity Firm Abraaj Raised Billions Pledging to Do Good—Then It Fell Apart". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  14. ^ "Abraaj executives facing criminal charges in US | PitchBook". pitchbook.com.
  15. ^ Wiggins, Kaye (3 May 2019). "Former CEO Gets Record $20 Million Bail". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved 6 May 2019.
  16. ^ "Abraaj founder sentenced to 3 years in prison by UAE court: report". DAWN.COM. August 9, 2019.
  17. ^ https://365343652932-web-server-storage.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/files/6516/0551/0517/Decision_Notice_ACLD.pdf [bare URL PDF]
  18. ^ https://365343652932-web-server-storage.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/files/6416/0551/0509/Decision_Notice_AIML_final.pdf [bare URL PDF]
  19. ^ Shah, Murtaza Ali (November 13, 2021). "UK judge delays Arif Naqvi's extradition to US". The News International (Pakistan). Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  20. ^ "Abraaj's Naqvi fined $135.6 Million Over Firm's Collapse". Bloomberg. January 27, 2022. Retrieved February 3, 2022.
  21. ^ Clark, Simon (28 July 2022). "The strange case of the cricket match that helped fund Imran Khan's political rise". The Financial Times. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  22. ^ "Aman Foundation | Transforming Lives |". Archived from the original on 2016-03-07. Retrieved 2016-02-28.
  23. ^ "President of Pakistan confers Sitara-e-Quaid-e-Azam on Al Abbar". Emirates News Agency. March 23, 2007. Retrieved 18 January 2017.
  24. ^ Bladd, Joanne (29 June 2015). "Dubai entrepreneur Arif Naqvi wins philanthropy award". PhilanthropyAge.
  25. ^ "Commissioners | Business & Sustainable Development Commission".

Bibliography

  • Simon Clark and Will Louch, The Key Man: The True Story of How the Global Elite Was Duped by a Capitalist Fairy, Harper Business (2021) ISBN 978-0-06-299621-3 - The story of Pakistani ex-CEO, Arif Naqvi
  • Brian Brivati, Icarus: The Life and Death of the Abraaj Group, Biteback Publishing (2021), ISBN 978-1785907180
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Arif_Naqvi&oldid=1106482926"