CRESCENT ENTERPRISES - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Chief Executive Officer
- Member of the Advisory Boards
- Member of the Young Presidents' Organization
Badr Jafar is an Emirati businessman and social entrepreneur. He is the CEO of Crescent Enterprises and the Chairman of Gulftainer, the world's largest container port operator that is privately-owned.
Besides his business interests, Badr is also actively involved in various organisations and initiatives that are focused humanitarian aid and international development, strategic philanthropy, corporate governance, entrepreneurship, education and the arts.
Badr has several advisory roles in the humanitarian and development sectors, such as being a member of the UN Secretary General's High-Level Panel on Humanitarian Financing, the UNESCO International Commission on the Futures of Education, the Board of Overseers of the International Rescue Committee (IRC), and the Board of the International Peace Institute (IPI). He also serves on the Advisory Committee and as a Special Representative for Business & Philanthropy for the 28th Conference of the Parties (COP28) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
In partnership with the United Nations Office for Partnerships, Badr founded the Pearl Initiative in 2010, a non-profit organisation led by the private sector to promote a corporate culture of transparency and accountability in the Gulf Region of the Middle East,
Badr is also interested in supporting social entrepreneurship in the MENA Region. He co-founded the Arab World Social Entrepreneurship Program (ASEP) with Ashoka and is a member of the Synergos Arab World Social Innovators (AWSI) Board of Governors. He serves on the Board of Advisors of Sharjah Entrepreneurship Centre (Sheraa) and Gaza Sky Geeks, and is a Board member of Endeavor UAE, a network that helps high-impact entrepreneurship.
Badr is a member of the Advisory Boards of several educational institutions, such as the Cambridge Judge Business School and MIT Legatum Centre for Development and Entrepreneurship, the American University of Beirut's International Advisory Council, and the American University of Sharjah's Business Advisory Council. He is the Founding Patron of the Centre for Strategic Philanthropy at the Cambridge Judge Business School, which is focused on enhancing the effectiveness of strategic philanthropy both in and from the world's fastest growing economies; and he is the Founding Patron of MENA region's first Strategic Philanthropy Initiative at NYU Abu Dhabi to research and promote high-impact philanthropy. He also serves on the advisory board of the Milken Institute for Strategic Philanthropy in the United States
Badr is a firm believer in the vital role of arts in innovation economies. He founded the non-profit Middle East Theatre Academy in 2011 to inspire young people in the Region to express their talents in writing, directing, producing and acting. He partnered with the esteemed music producer Quincy Jones to launch the Global Gumbo Group in the same year to foster cross-cultural dialogue through entertainment. He serves as a member on the International Advisory Council of the Middle East Institute, the Guggenheim Middle Eastern Circle, the Artistic Director's Circle of The Old Vic Theatre Trust and the Kennedy Center's Centennial Circle. Badr was honored with the Gold Medal in the Arts by the Kennedy Center International Committee on the Arts in 2014 for his contributions to bridging cultures through music and theatre.
Badr has been a member of the Young Presidents' Organization since 2005 and has served as Chair of the YPO Emirates Chapter. In 2011, the World Economic Forum recognised him as a Young Global Leader, and he is now actively involved as a member of the WEF Stewardship Board on New Economy and Society, the WEF Stewardship Board on Digital Economy and New Value Creation, the WEF Board of Leaders for a Sustainable Middle East and North Africa and the WEF Board Jobs Consortium 2022-2024. He is also the Co-Chair of the WEF Family Business Community. Badr serves as a Champion of the WEF EDISON Alliance, WEF Reskilling Revolution and GAEA - Giving to Amplify Earth Action, a global initiative to fund, support and grow public, private and philanthropic partnerships (PPPPs) to help unlock the financing needed to achieve net zero, reverse nature loss and restore biodiversity by 2050. He is also a member of the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) Advisory Council.
Badr is an alumni of Eton College and earned a Master of Engineering degree from the University of Cambridge. He also has a Master of Studies from the Judge Business School from the same university.
His personal blog can be found at badrjafar.com and Twitter feed @BadrJafar.
Badr Jafar, Chief Executive Officer of Crescent Enterprises, a UAE-headquarterd multinational diversified business, revealed some of the main findings of the report at the WTO's MC13's Ceremonial Gala dinner which took place on Monday, 26th February. Addressing trade ministers and senior officials from around the world, along with representatives of several local and federal entities and the private sector, Mr. Jafar outlined the importance of joint efforts between the public, private and civil sectors in tackling the rapid technological, socioeconomic, political and environmental changes that will take place over the coming years, adding:
Ghada Abdelkader is responsible for monitoring the existing Crescent Enterprises' portfolio companies within the ports and logistics, business aviation, technology, and private equity sectors as well as the evaluation, structuring, execution, and post-acquisition management of new investments.
Ghada has 14 years of experience in investment banking, corporate finance, and financial services consulting across the MENA region. She has executed deals of over billions of dollars, including private and public placements, mergers and acquisitions, and greenfield projects.
Prior to joining Crescent Enterprises, Ghada worked in the Investment Banking Division of Al Mal Capital in the UAE, where she participated in various private and public transactions including the $325 million initial public offering of Drake & Scull International. Earlier, she worked with ASEC Cement Holding in Egypt, a subsidiary of Qalaa Holdings, where she was involved in building the company's portfolio through numerous acquisitions and greenfield and brownfield projects of cement plants throughout the MENA region. Ghada started her career with PricewaterhouseCoopers in Egypt, where she participated in business valuations and financial due diligence transactions across the manufacturing, services, and industrial sectors.
Ghada holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics from Cairo University and is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA). She is a member of the CFA Institute and the CFA Society Emirates.
Job Titles:
- Chartered Accountant
- Executive Director
- Board Member of the Crescent Group
- Director of Endo Quest Robotics & X Cath Inc
Neeraj provides management leadership and board oversight over Crescent Enterprises' investments and operations. He has supported the company's evolution and transformation throughout its years of expansion, by fostering new investments as well as nurturing its various established businesses within the fields of ports and logistics, healthcare, power plant engineering and construction. In recent years he has been leading the growth in venture capital investments in MENA and globally.
As a member of the Executive Board of Gulftainer, Crescent Enterprises' ports and logistics subsidiary, Neeraj provides oversight and support in all of the company's major decisions and policies, playing a key role in its international expansion, diversification, and related financing activities.
Neeraj Agrawal is a founder Director of Endo Quest Robotics & X Cath Inc from inception and has been instrumental in its evolution from research phase to its current status of development & future.
In his capacity as a Board Member of the Crescent Group, Neeraj is responsible for business development, finance & investment functions, and building relationships with the investment & banking community and diverse stakeholders. His numerous achievements throughout his 35 years with the Group include management leadership and board oversight across various business globally.
Neeraj was instrumental in the successful creation and formation of a regional publicly listed energy company Dana Gas PJSC (including very successful $ 80 billion IPO), the US$1.2bn acquisition and financing of TSX listed Centurion Energy International Inc., and the Middle East's first forward-looking accelerated US$1bn capital markets instrument. More recently Neeraj has been instrumental in securing circa $800 million international financing for development of gas resources including from US Development Finance Corporation under long term agreements.
Neeraj is a qualified Chartered Accountant and supports voluntary work and philanthropy through charities in India and UAE.
Job Titles:
- Deputy CEO & Head of Investments
Tushar Singhvi leads corporate development and investments activities and is responsible for evaluating and executing new investment opportunities on behalf of Crescent Enterprises. He also manages the portfolio companies through strategy and corporate development. He has been instrumental in cultivating corporate prospects and in contributing to the development of Crescent Enterprises' strategic and operational plans within the ports and logistics, business aviation, healthcare, private equity, and venture capital verticals.
Tushar has over 18 years of global experience in investment management, corporate development, strategy development, and project management in sectors including power, logistics, oil and gas, healthcare, and infrastructure development. He has worked on a range of transactions including mergers and acquisitions, capital raising, divestitures, and debt restructuring.
Before joining Crescent Enterprises, Tushar worked with KPMG Corporate Finance in Dubai and, earlier, with an investment banking firm in London, United Kingdom. Prior to that, he spent five years in the power and infrastructure industries in Asia and Africa.
Tushar holds a Bachelor of Engineering degree from the University of Pune, India. He also holds a Master of Business Administration with distinction from the University of Oxford.
Job Titles:
- Executive Director
- Board Member of Crescent Group
Ravi Kumar is the Executive Director responsible for managing Crescent Enterprises' global office operations with effective shared business services, including accounting, business processes and systems, human resources and administration, information technology, insurance, and supply chain management.
Most notably, Ravi is responsible for developing the strategic landscape of the company's SAP ERP systems and ensuring that the organisation is nimble and responsive to business challenges and market dynamics. He is also in charge of providing strategic direction and management oversight for the company's operations and investments, and is equally involved in business development activities.