A few years ago, I attended the annual international fraud conference in Cambridge. I got into conversation with a leading Australian lawyer. We were discussing the “Nigerian” scams – they always seemed to emanate from Nigeria, hence the title. They’re the ones where an email lands saying the sender has stumbled across a pile of money and in return for a fee, they can share it with you. There is no treasure trove and they disappear.
He said he’d come across a variation where a client was told there was a suitcase of cash and all they had to do was to meet, satisfy themselves it was genuine, make a payment and the stash was theirs. They duly met, the suitcase was opened, the dollar bills looked fine, they paid and walked off with the bag. When they examined its contents, they found that below the top layers of notes there was just black paper. They’d been fleeced.
We laughed at how gullible they’d been. Yes, he said, but worse than that – they were extremely sophisticated, successful in business. Unfortunately, put the prospect of making a killing in front of them and their usual judgment deserted them.
I was reminded of this when reading The Key Man: How the Global Elite Was Duped by a Capitalist Fairy Tale by Simon Clark and Will Louch, the new book by two Wall Street Journal reporters about the rise and fall of Arif Naqvi. The founder of Dubai-based Abraaj Group, Naqvi would surely nod his respect to the suitcase producer and vice versa. Both, if they got together, could smile knowingly at man’s idiocy, how greed defeats caution, even in the sharpest of minds.
Naqvi, 60, is the silver-tongued charmer who persuaded the likes of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the US Agency for International Development, Washington State Investment Board, the World Bank and assorted governments, including those of the UK and France, to back his impact investing schemes, in using their funds to help the world’s poor while earning them a return at the same time. In all, $780m allegedly went down the chute before law enforcers, including UAE regulators, were able to catch up with him. In April 2019, Naqvi was arrested at Heathrow. The Americans want to extradite him to face charges, which if proven would send him to jail for up to 291 years. He denies the charges and remains holed up in London, in a flat in South Kensington, having posted bail of $15m and wearing an electronic tag, while his extradition appeal is heard.
What the writers dissect marvellously is an all-too common tale of slick patter feeding off a degree of avarice and a large dollop of naivety. The result, as ever, is woe.
It’s not the first occasion that people regarded as smart financially have come unstuck. The unfortunate suitcase buyer and much more famously, the victims of Bernie Madoff, spring to mind. What’s different here is that they were motivated by a desire to do good. Naqvi’s skill was to prey on their wish to spread their wealth, to help others. Instead of benefiting only their shareholders, his formula enabled them to assist the disadvantaged while still earning. Genius. Except, if they’d stopped and thought about it, barely anyone else had ever succeeded in making “philanthrocapitalism” pay, not to the extent that Naqvi promised.
He tapped into the ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) investment trend, exploiting consciences and very real concerns, expressed at Davos and elsewhere, about growing inequality. He was a supreme virtue signaller, focusing on guilt and able to attract vast amounts of finance.
The fascination with the Naqvi story is that constant struggle between profit and not-for-profit. Banks, and his biggest targets were some of the world’s mightiest financial powerhouses, are mandated to make money for their owners. The returns must keep rising or else those investors would be better off going elsewhere. Yet, the executives are all too aware of how they’re perceived. Putting image to one side as well, in many instances they really do want to make the world a better place – they’ve got children too; they’re not immune to fears about climate change and social disintegration. In short, although their critics might disagree, they’re also human.
It was precisely this humanity that Naqvi was able to plunder. Likewise, it was human behaviour that saw them fail to realise what was really going on.
He appeared to offer the perfect, win-win solution. He explained how he could supposedly generate profits from benefiting the poor, how the impoverished millions could themselves be consumers, how he was going to turn the planet into one giant marketing and sales opportunity.
Naqvi’s skill was to prey on their wish to spread their wealth, to help others
Abraaj claimed to manage as much as $14bn, making it the largest private equity firm in the Middle East, managing stakes in hundreds of companies right across the emerging markets. Naqvi moved in the same circles as Prince Charles, Bill Gates, John Kerry. The United Nations was coveting his attention; in his home country of Pakistan, he was hailed as a future leader.
He was a doer, someone who could take on the biggest issues and crack them. In New York, in September 2017, while the UN was gathering, Naqvi was sponsoring a conference at the nearby Mandarin Oriental hotel, where he was seeking to raise $6bn for a new fund for attacking hunger, sickness, illiteracy, global warming, power shortages – nothing was off limits. “To do good does not necessarily mean to compromise returns,” Naqvi assured, walking up and down the stage. “It is gratifying that we are having this event on morning one, day one and hour one of the UN General Assembly week.”
While he paced and held forth to the elite audience, his inbox contained emails from staff telling him the money had run out, that Abraaj could not support his improvement programmes. The reason the accounts were bare, allege the Americans, is because Naqvi had taken the cash – he’d allegedly transferred $780m to accounts belonging to him and his associates. Abraaj desperately needed more resources to stop it from going under. This, rather than a passion for dispensing humanity, lay behind his stellar, imploring performance.
It’s a sorry tale, one that raises important questions about our ability to deliver “ethical” capitalism. Alas, it is proof, yet again, of the investment adage, that if something is too good to be true it probably is. While his backers count their losses and Naqvi battles his US pursuers, it is galling to think that right now, somewhere, a snake oil salesman is doing their darnedest and folks are falling for it. Nothing ever changes.
The five pillars of Islam
AI traffic lights to ease congestion at seven points to Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Street
The seven points are:
Shakhbout bin Sultan Street
Dhafeer Street
Hadbat Al Ghubainah Street (outbound)
Salama bint Butti Street
Al Dhafra Street
Rabdan Street
Umm Yifina Street exit (inbound)
More from Neighbourhood Watch
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
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Results
Ashraf Ghani 50.64 per cent
Abdullah Abdullah 39.52 per cent
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar 3.85 per cent
Rahmatullah Nabil 1.8 per cent
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More about Middle East geopolitics
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What are the GCSE grade equivalents?
- Grade 9 = above an A*
- Grade 8 = between grades A* and A
- Grade 7 = grade A
- Grade 6 = just above a grade B
- Grade 5 = between grades B and C
- Grade 4 = grade C
- Grade 3 = between grades D and E
- Grade 2 = between grades E and F
- Grade 1 = between grades F and G
RESULTS
2pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 40,000 (Dirt) 1,200m
Winner: AF Senad, Nathan Crosse (jockey), Kareem Ramadan (trainer)
2.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 40,000 (D) 1,000m
Winner: Ashjaan, Fabrice Veron, Eric Lemartinel.
3pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 40,000 (D) 1,700m
Winner: Amirah, Conner Beasley, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.
3.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 40,000 (D) 1,700m
Winner: Jap Al Yaasoob, Szczepan Mazur, Irfan Ellahi.
4pm: Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan Cup Prestige Handicap (PA) Dh 100,000 (D) 1,200m
Winner: Jawaal, Fernando Jara, Majed Al Jahouri.
4.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh 40,000 (D) 1,200m
Winner: Manhunter, Ryan Curatolo, Mujeeb Rahman.
SPEC%20SHEET
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RESULT
Huddersfield Town 1 Manchester City 2
Huddersfield: Otamendi (45' 1 og), van La Parra (red card 90' 6)
Man City: Agüero (47' pen), Sterling (84')
Man of the match: Christopher Schindler (Huddersfield Town)
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Barcelona v Liverpool, Wednesday, 11pm (UAE).
Second leg
Liverpool v Barcelona, Tuesday, May 7, 11pm
Games on BeIN Sports
MATCH INFO
Manchester United 1 (Rashford 36')
Liverpool 1 (Lallana 84')
Man of the match: Marcus Rashford (Manchester United)
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
EA Sports FC 26
Publisher: EA Sports
Consoles: PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox Series X/S
Rating: 3/5
BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
Stree
Producer: Maddock Films, Jio Movies
Director: Amar Kaushik
Cast: Rajkummar Rao, Shraddha Kapoor, Pankaj Tripathi, Aparshakti Khurana, Abhishek Banerjee
Rating: 3.5
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
In numbers: China in Dubai
The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000
Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000
Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent
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ACC 2019: The winners in full
Best Actress Maha Alemi, Sofia
Best Actor Mohamed Dhrif, Weldi
Best Screenplay Meryem Benm’Barek, Sofia
Best Documentary Of Fathers and Sons by Talal Derki
Best Film Yomeddine by Abu Bakr Shawky
Best Director Nadine Labaki, Capernaum
Day 1, Dubai Test: At a glance
Moment of the day Sadeera Samarawickrama set pulses racing with his strokeplay on his introduction to Test cricket. It reached a feverish peak when he stepped down the wicket and launched Yasir Shah, who many regard as the world’s leading spinner, back over his head for six. No matter that he was out soon after: it felt as though the future had arrived.
Stat of the day - 5 The last time Sri Lanka played a Test in Dubai – they won here in 2013 – they had four players in their XI who were known as wicketkeepers. This time they have gone one better. Each of Dinesh Chandimal, Kaushal Silva, Samarawickrama, Kusal Mendis, and Niroshan Dickwella – the nominated gloveman here – can keep wicket.
The verdict Sri Lanka want to make history by becoming the first team to beat Pakistan in a full Test series in the UAE. They could not have made a better start, first by winning the toss, then by scoring freely on an easy-paced pitch. The fact Yasir Shah found some turn on Day 1, too, will have interested their own spin bowlers.
Key Points
- Protests against President Omar Al Bashir enter their sixth day
- Reports of President Bashir's resignation and arrests of senior government officials
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if you go
The flights
Air Astana flies direct from Dubai to Almaty from Dh2,440 per person return, and to Astana (via Almaty) from Dh2,930 return, both including taxes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Ritz-Carlton Almaty cost from Dh1,944 per night including taxes; and in Astana the new Ritz-Carlton Astana (www.marriott) costs from Dh1,325; alternatively, the new St Regis Astana costs from Dh1,458 per night including taxes.
When to visit
March-May and September-November
Visas
Citizens of many countries, including the UAE do not need a visa to enter Kazakhstan for up to 30 days. Contact the nearest Kazakhstan embassy or consulate.
Tips for job-seekers
- Do not submit your application through the Easy Apply button on LinkedIn. Employers receive between 600 and 800 replies for each job advert on the platform. If you are the right fit for a job, connect to a relevant person in the company on LinkedIn and send them a direct message.
- Make sure you are an exact fit for the job advertised. If you are an HR manager with five years’ experience in retail and the job requires a similar candidate with five years’ experience in consumer, you should apply. But if you have no experience in HR, do not apply for the job.
David Mackenzie, founder of recruitment agency Mackenzie Jones Middle East
'Ashkal'
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BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
Saturday, May 16 (kick-offs UAE time)
Borussia Dortmund v Schalke (4.30pm)
RB Leipzig v Freiburg (4.30pm)
Hoffenheim v Hertha Berlin (4.30pm)
Fortuna Dusseldorf v Paderborn (4.30pm)
Augsburg v Wolfsburg (4.30pm)
Eintracht Frankfurt v Borussia Monchengladbach (7.30pm)
Sunday, May 17
Cologne v Mainz (4.30pm),
Union Berlin v Bayern Munich (7pm)
Monday, May 18
Werder Bremen v Bayer Leverkusen (9.30pm)
The specs: 2018 Jeep Compass
Price, base: Dh100,000 (estimate)
Engine: 2.4L four-cylinder
Transmission: Nine-speed automatic
Power: 184bhp at 6,400rpm
Torque: 237Nm at 3,900rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 9.4L / 100km
