Agha Hasan Abedi
| Agha Hasan Abedi | |
|---|---|
| Born | 14 May 1922 Lucknow, British India |
| Died | 6 Aug 1995 at age 74 Karachi, Pakistan |
| Occupation | Banker |
| Years active | 1946-1990 |
| Known for |
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Agha Hasan Abedi also known as Agha Sahab (14 May 1922 – 5 August 1995) was a Pakistani banker and philanthropist who founded the Bank of Credit and Commerce International (BCCI) in 1972. BCCI was, at one point, the seventh largest private bank in the world, but it collapsed in 1991 after regulators in the United States and the United Kingdom found it was involved in a money laundering scandal. Mr. Abedi underwent a heart transplant operation in 1988, and died of a heart attack on 5 August 1995 in Karachi.
Agha Hasan Abedi was born in a well-off Shia Muslim family in Lucknow, British India and migrated to Pakistan after the independence of Pakistan in 1947. He received his master's degree in English Literature and a Law degree from Lucknow University.
Beginning his career in 1946 with Habib Bank before independence of Pakistan, he brought about significant changes in Pakistan's banking culture when he founded the United Bank Ltd (UBL) in 1959 in Karachi. He was the Founder and the first President. Under his stewardship, UBL became the second largest bank in Pakistan. Mr. Abedi introduced a host of professional innovations, including the concept of personalised service and banking support to trade and industry, paying particular attention to the bank's overseas operations. One of the first to comprehend the opportunities offered by the oil boom in the Persian Gulf, Mr Abedi pioneered close economic collaboration in the private sector between Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The UAE President, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, extended his patronage to UBL operations both in Pakistan and abroad.
When banking was nationalised in Pakistan in 1972, Mr. Abedi founded the Bank of Credit and Commerce International with the Bank of America NT & SA as a major shareholder. Registered in Luxembourg, the BCCI began its operations from a two-room head office in London. Over the years, it developed into a worldwide banking operation with branches in 72 countries and 16,000 employees on its payroll. Mr. Abedi was personally responsible for inducting a large number of Pakistanis into the field of international banking and almost 80 per cent of the BCCI's top executive positions at the head office and in branches in various countries were held by Pakistanis. "It was founded by the charismatic Agha Hasan Abedi in 1972, backed by Middle Eastern investors and run mostly by the South Asians." Mr. Abedi severed his connection with BCCI in 1990 after suffering a heart attack and led a retired life in Karachi until his death of heart failure at Karachi's Aga Khan hospital in 1995.
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