People

Mohammad Sotoudeh

Co-Founder

Mohammad has more than 30 years of experience at senior levels in global banking and capital markets. Highly accomplished banker with extensive MENA and US track record.

His focus has been sovereign and corporate debt financings and investments, fixed income, credit trading and structured finance across the globe from the U.S. to the Middle Eastern and Asian markets.  Prior to founding Essdar Capital group, Mohammad served  in senior roles  in the United States and the MENA region in organisations like Citigroup, Daiwa Securities and Nomura Securities amongst others.

Mohammad has a unique insight in managing complex global transactions for Sovereign  and corporate financings and investments involving G7 and Emerging Markets.

Mohammad along with his colleague Suketu Sanghvi and some of the most prominent families from the UAE set up Essdar Capital Group in the year 2007, just after the first phase of global financial crisis started and together they set up one of the most successful investment advisory and asset management platform in the special situations space regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority up to the year 2012. Thereafter, Essdar Capital Group decided to concentrate on niche advisory services such as Investment Consultancy, Management Consultancy and Strategy Advisory Services.

Mohammad holds a Masters Degree in Management from Harvard University and a B.Sc. in Engineering and a B.A. in International Relations from Tufts.

Suketu Sanghvi

Co-Founder

Suketu has a diploma in Computer Programming and is a rank holder Chartered Accountant and also a Company Secretary (ranked # 2nd on all India basis) and secured the first rank in computer systems in his bachelor degree from the Mumbai University. He has a work experience of 30 years and started his career in investment banking in India and thereafter, moved to financial centres of Singapore, Hong Kong and Dubai in the United Arab Emirates.

Highly accomplished banker with extensive MENA and all of emerging markets track record.

Suketu is an illustrious investment banker who has worked on deals and desks which have won the most prestigious awards globally such as Euromoney, IFR and ISR awards (eight time winner). He assisted many tech start-ups in India on a pro-bono basis.

Prior to setting up Essdar Group in 2007, he worked with Emirates National Sec. Co. in the UAE.

He worked for ABN AMRO Bank, India, Singapore & Hong Kong from Jan 2000 to March 2006. His primary assignment was to originate, structure, underwrite and invest in structured debt including special situation, high yield type fixed income transactions (for underwriting and for proprietary investments in ABN AMRO Bank’s hold to maturity Asian ABCP conduit book) with embedded derivatives. Part of the most successful DCM teams in Asia (including no # 1 in India) and received Euromoney awards for multiple years, Business India deal award in 2002 and Finance Asia deal award.

Prior to that he worked for UTI Bank (now Axis Bank) from 1997 to Dec 1999. He set-up the investment banking platform for the bank (which grew from around 2 to 3 employees when joined to more than 1,000 employees today and laid the foundation to take it to the number # 1 investment bank position in India). While being primarily responsible as credit underwriter and trader, was also involved in idea generation and setting up of new businesses for the Bank.

Suketu started his career in Mergers and Acquisitions, Takeovers, Equity IPOs and Venture Capital Investments.

Antony Hatter

Senior Partner

Antony lives in United Kingdom after living in the Middle East for many decades (Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates). A highly experienced Global Markets Banking professional with an extensive and consistent proven MENA and UK regional track record.

Experienced in establishing and developing coverage models at senior / principal level predominately focusing on; Sovereign Wealth Funds, Central Banks, Financial Institutions, large Regional Corporate clients and family offices.

Competencies include solid product knowledge; Financial Markets, DCM, M&A, Real Estate, Private Equity, Private Banking, Asset Management and Wholesale Banking activities.

Experience includes over 30 years in the capital markets working with highly rated institutions like Standard Chartered Bank, ABN AMRO Bank, Alawwal Bank/ Saudi Hollandi Bank and Credit Lyonnaise.

Heading Global Markets and Origination and Distribution coverage across the MENA region and the UK with an extremely strong network coupled with an entrepreneurial approach to anticipate business and product needs in an ever-changing market environment.

Antony also has significant experience in the real estate property markets of United Kingdom and Middle East. He is a Managing Director at Hive Property & Investments Ltd.

Ram Chandran

Senior Partner

Ram has over 30 years experience in the fields of compliance, finance and accounting. He has completed many audits including statutory, revenue and compliance audit of banks, insurance, corporate and non-corporate bodies. Ram also has wide experience in taxation.

Ram has worked in various capacities in different companies based in GCC and India engaged in different segments from manufacturing, trading, hospitality to investment firms.

Ram holds a CPA from the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and CA from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India.

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