Clifford Sobel

Clifford M. Sobel
Clifford M. Sobel, Managing Partner of Valor Capital
Born	1949 (age 67–68)
Residence	New Jersey Florida New York
Nationality	American
Other names	Cliff Sobel
Alma mater	New York University, bachelor's degree
Occupation	Business Executive Managing Partner, Valor Capital Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, SJJ Investment Corp. Top Republican fundraiser
Board member of	Diamond Offshore Drilling Empower America Republican Leadership Council Business Executives for National Security

Clifford M. Sobel (born 1949, Brooklyn, New York) is an American business executive, financier, Republican fundraiser, U.S. diplomat and former ambassador. Most recently, he served as the United States Ambassador to Brazil. He was nominated for the post by President George W. Bush on May 23, 2006, confirmed by the United States Senate on June 29, 2006, and sworn in by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on July 20, 2006. He presented his credentials to the Brazilian Foreign Ministry on August 2, 2006. Ambassador Sobel is the 53rd Chief of Mission to Brazil. He resigned as Ambassador in August 2009. From 2001-05, Sobel was the 62nd United States Ambassador to the Netherlands. President George W. Bush nominated him on July 3, 2001 and he was sworn in by Secretary of State Colin Powell on November 8, 2001. On December 5, 2001, he presented his credentials to Her Majesty Queen Beatrix.

Since 1994, Sobel has been Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of SJJ Investment Corp. He is Managing Partner and founder of the investment firm Valor Capital Group in New York and Brazil. Sobel is the Independent Director of Diamond Offshore Drilling, Inc.

Sobel was born to a Jewish family in Brooklyn, New York. He first attended the University of Vermont, and in 1972, graduated with honors from New York University's School of Commerce with a bachelor's degree in management. During the 1970s and 1980s, he founded several companies that designed, manufactured, and imported fixtures for the setup of retail stores. These companies became some of the fastest growing and most innovative in the industry, and were awarded the Sears Chairman's Award, and numerous design awards under Sobel's management. From 1985–91 he was a founder and board member of Norcrown Bank. He was also the Chairman and President of SJJ Investment Corporation and CMS Realty Company. He then was appointed Chairman of Net2Phone, a software/services company whose principal line of business is SIP-based and PacketCable-based VoIP.