Private company

• Advised Family Offices on growth capital and pre-IPO opportunities in Education, Tech, and other sectors.
• Conducted deal-making and venture evaluations to identify lucrative investment opportunities.
• Collaborated with stakeholders to strategize and execute successful investments for high returns.

CEO / Operating Partner

TomouhCL

Member

OPUS

OPUS is a global community focused on empowering the next generation of business innovators. We believe community is the key driver of opportunity. Built on inclusivity and diversity, our community brings together carefully chosen individuals known for their talent and ambition.

Our mission is to become the world’s foremost connector of people and creator of opportunities.

Kïdo

* Spearheaded establishment and growth of the 3 UAE Schools via greenfield and acquisitions, conducted a successful exit to a strategic investor through an exceptional due diligence and negotiation process achieving high multiple ROI. 
* As part of executive committees / senior management, working across geographies to review, evaluate and plan corporate-wide strategies and organizational initiatives to build infrastructure, operations, sales processes and systems to achieve growth of the Revenue by 50% year-on-year.  
* Evaluating potential expansion via Joint Venture and Franchising with Private Equity, Regional Family Offices and Strategic Investors into Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Egypt, Pakistan, Oman, Qatar and Africa. 
* Canvased for and engaged in multiple fund-raising discussions with Private Equity, Venture Capital, Individual and Strategic Investors globally. 
* Designed, implemented and championed a robust financial infrastructure (budgeting, forecasting and reporting) from scratch across geographies, subsidiaries and product verticals.

Group CFO & CEO, Middle East & Africa

Standard Chartered Bank

* Achieved performance beyond management expectations for the Sub-Saharan Africa Financial Markets Business to make it one of the best-performing segments by expanding cross-asset derivatives solutions across flow and bespoke structured deals. 
* Harnessed the transformative power of a new well-trained team and selected global stakeholders to increase revenue from 20x + in less than 4-years.

Head of Africa Structuring, SSG Group (Emerging Market Structuring)

* Closed the largest derivative trade in Pakistan for the Group. 
* Development of Islamic Shariah-Compliant Derivatives.

Derivatives Structurer - Middle East and Pakistan

* Set-up and fast-tracked the growth of the credit structuring business in London from less than USD 200k to USD 8mio during the credit crisis of 2007-2008. Cultivated a strong collaboration with European / US Sales teams to build distribution channels to pension funds, hedge funds, asset managers and private banks. 
* Successfully closed a USD 1 Billion+ Capital Relief Balance Sheet transaction for the Bank through a Structured Trade in December 2007, which was recognized by Head of Wholesale Bank and Group CEO.

Structurer

* Launched and developed the strategy for the MENA Capital Markets business across the Origination and Distribution business lines, product initiatives in the Structured Credit space, resulting in numerous firsts for the Bank. Contributed to increase in revenue by more than 200%. 
* Led the execution of 4 Structured IPO Lending transactions (Revenue USD 10mio+) for the largest local IPOs in the UAE in 2005-2006, coordinating structural requirements internally and liaising with sales teams and clients.
* Pitched and executed the first SCB IPO Lead Receiving Bank mandate for the Al Baraka Bank IPO in 2004. Put together a regional syndicate of 12 banks and the infrastructure to deliver a highly successful transaction.
* led the efforts to sell-down CDO equity tranches to institutional investors in MENA

Associate Director, Capital Markets

National Bank of Abu Dhabi

* Structured a USD 20mio Fund of Hedge-Funds - manager / strategy due diligence, risk evaluation, selection.
* Launched the FAB UAE Trading Fund which currently has an AUM of AED 141mio.

Investment Analyst

I am the man in the arena!

I’m a serial entrepreneur who started selling a hand-copied local newsletter at 8-years old, and I’ve never known what it’s like not to be responsible and be a leader. No set-back has kept me down, and I have always approached my next “adventure” with enthusiasm. I would put this down to my huge capacity to learn, my resilience, and curiosity allowing me to identify paths to reinvent myself and my organizations. 

I have enjoyed many executive positions in my career with my strong commercial acumen, and ability to deliver operational excellence with scale across multiple markets. I focus on delivering key outcomes, building amazing teams and collaborations and scaling to new heights. 

As Regional CEO / Group CFO for Kido, my experience has allowed me to gain extensive international knowledge of the learning markets and impact investments including early childhood education, edtech and school operations. We have leveraged technology and innovative pedagogy to improve delivery in Pre-School Education.

• I built, lead and grew the UAE Nursery Business over 7 years and orchestrated a successful exit.
• I have had extensive experience with creating finance strategy, managing cashflow, and optimizing pricing, costs and revenues. 
• I have contributed by advising on and executing M&A, capital raising (Private Equity and Venture Capital), build-out, tax optimization, strategic, corporate and legal restructuring transactions for portfolio companies across UK, US, India, UAE, Hong Kong, Singapore. 

At SCB, I joined in 2004 in the Capital Markets MENA team, was promoted in two years to be based in London to build and grow the credit distribution platform across Europe and North America. In 2009, I joined the Strategic Solutions Group in Middle East and within a year was asked to lead the team and expansion in Sub-Saharan Africa. I Implemented exceptional growth in revenue for the Africa FM Sales business and for all business lines multiplying sales by at least 3x to upto 20x and higher throughout. 

Professional Skills
Strategic Planning | Transformational Leadership | Team Development | Product Roadmap | Portfolio Strategy | Deal Making | Investment Analysis | M&A | Financial Systems | Global Expansion

Domain Knowledge 
Investment | Private Equity | Capital Markets | Education Management | Education Consulting | EdTech

Umair Tariq

Another excellent session arranged by TomouhCL !

Excellent and though provoking discussions and great to meet leaders from across the region!

li_at

JSESSIONID

Talks about #strategy, #education, #investment, #impactinvesting, and #entrepreneurship

Family Office Advisor | CEO | CFO | Private Markets Deal-Maker | Buy-and-Build & Portfolio Operations | Education Strategy | Ex-Standard Chartered | CFA Charterholder | GCC • UK • US • Africa

A year of consistent engagement with UCEA - Family Office Group events has reinforced a fundamental truth: the most valuable deals rarely come from cold pitches but they emerge from trusted relationships built over time.

Last week's gathering was another testament to Michael Reeves and his team's ability to curate not just investment opportunities, but meaningful dialogues. What makes these events exceptional isn't simply the quality of dealflow presented, though it consistently impresses, it's the intentionality behind who's in the room.

Throughout this year, I've watched this community evolve from individual connections into a genuine ecosystem where family offices and institutional investors can think collectively about complex allocations. The conversations have shifted from transactional to strategic, from reactive to proactive.

A particular highlight from last week: the cross-border opportunities that wouldn't typically reach traditional channels, presented with the kind of operational transparency that serious allocators demand.

To the UCEA team—thank you for understanding that effective capital deployment starts with effective relationship building. The consistency and quality you've maintained throughout the year hasn't gone unnoticed.

Already looking forward to the next one.

#FamilyOffice #InstitutionalInvesting #PrivateMarkets #CapitalAllocation #DealFlow

UCEA - Family Office Group

Regional Investment Manager @ UCEA Family Office | Relationship Development

"It is better to lose time than temper in a negotiation"

#FamilyOffice #Dealmaking #Investing #Growth #Leadership

An Excellent Biography. 

I've been very interested in John Malone's deal-making and structuring creativity since reading "The Cable Cowboys". 

While not that much in-depth on the structuring part, its a must-read for entrepreneurs on fast-changing industries, mergers, acquisitions, deal-making and growth and challenges. 

I now need to research on tracking stocks, spin-offs and the various structures used by John Malone throughout his career and look forward to that study. 

#Mergers #FamilyOffice #PrivateEquity #ReadingClub #Leadership

“Reality will pay you back in equal proportion to your delusion.”

— Will Smith

#Entrepreneurship #Leadership #Growth

Every year end, many review the Investment Outlooks from various banks and investment houses, navigating through differing opinions in extensive reports. 

This year, I utilized NotebookLM to help summarize the information, and it is impressive to see how it synthesizes data and documents into a coherent summary. 

While I still recommend reading the original documents in full, you may find this #2026 #MarketOutlook Compendium useful. 

#Investing #AI #Markets #FamilyOffice #PrivateEquity #VentureCapital

Compendium of 2026 Outlooks

“I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free.”
- Michaelangelo


#Entrepreneurship #Leadership #Growth #Creativity

“An object in possession seldom retains the same charm that it had in pursuit.”

- Pliny the Younger: Roman senator, lawyer, and author 


#Leadership #Growth #Goals #Entrepreneurship

Bardawil Development Advisory

I lead Bardawil Development Advisory, guiding investors and developers through every stage of the real estate cycle, from land acquisition and feasibility to design, cost management, and delivery.

My role is to structure opportunities, align the right partners, and ensure execution creates lasting value.

Managing Partner

Black Engineering

Director responsible for the implementation of the King Fahd Cultural Center for the Ministry of Culture.

Project Director

TCN GCC

Senior Development Manager

Design management
Cost management / value engineering
Technical construction advisory
Procurement strategy
Dubai/Riyadh - Working on high end large scale offices resort.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sd2tHRXAlAQ

Real Estate Development Manager

Bardawil developments - Since 1970

Led the family real estate development company operating since 1970: 

- Conduct feasibility studies to determine the budget of the project 
- Performed a site analysis that shows the level of the lands with respect to the surrounding projects
- Conducted a market analysis to have a clear vision of the future value of the project
- Developed a market positioning analysis that allowed to set the standards to be adopted to beat the competition 
- Set an area program that optimized the diverse use of the land to achieve the highest return
- Prepared a financial and investment analysis taking into account the debt/equity ratio.
- Set different investment strategies that lead to different return on investment
- Prepared joint venture financial impact analysis that ultimately lead to a joint venture agreement
- Prepared project IRR and NPV as well as equity IRR and NPV for different investment strategies
- Prepare project license plans and detailed execution drawings 
- Submit structural analysis and technical data sheets to the technical controller 
- Responsible of all construction materials selections and procurements 
- Conduct regular meetings with all subcontractors to maintain proper coordination on site 
- Implement the standards set by the Technical Controller: Bureau Veritas 
- Develop and control the project schedule 
- Prepare 4th of August explosion impact analysis showing the cost variation and time delay 
- Manage and monitor stakeholders’ engagement to avoid delays during the construction 
- Direct and manage site teams to reach the utmost quality of work

Sadaka Group - SEPT  (JV)

-Conduct weekly site meetings to discuss the overall progress on site 
-Review and process all subcontractors’ payments 
-Review and correct all shop drawings and As-built drawings before submittals to the 
consultant 
-Plan, organize, and schedule all activities, resources, materials and equipment 
-Liaise with the stakeholders to finalize the selections of building materials 
-Update the schedule on monthly basis along with the budget 
-Conduct procurements and follow up with the suppliers 
-Provide guidance and leadership to ensure a positive culture among the team

Construction Manager

Mak Builders

-Coordinate between all trades workers, professionals, site engineers and subcontractors 
to optimize efficiency 
-Ensure that the execution is up to the standards requested. 
-Monitoring project status in order to make sure it being completed within the timeframe 
and budget and adjust forecast as required. 
-Prepare daily and monthly construction reports showing the progress of the construction 
site. 
-Prepare purchase orders. 
-Provide solutions and advices to any escalated matters 
-Prepare weekly progress reports for subcontractors’ payments. 
-Develop budget and cost control analysis. 
-Assist the team in the preparation of shop drawings and as-built drawings.

Lead construction SAL

Site Engineer

Consolidated Contractors International Company

Director with two decades of full-cycle real estate experience from acquisition and feasibility to design, development, and execution. Proven track record of delivering high-end, multi-million-dollar projects with precision and impact.

Jad Bardawil

I don’t hire architects for pretty towers. I hire them to increase my efficiency by 10%.

Ten percent sounds small. In development it is huge.

Ten percent more net to gross.
Ten percent less concrete and MEP waste.
Ten percent quicker on approvals and RFIs.
Ten percent smoother in construction so the contractor is building, not waiting.

Same land. same GFA. same market.

But the returns belong to the developer who chose the architect that can prove that 10%.

That is the only beauty contest I care about.

If you are a developer or family office. how are you choosing architects today. brand, lowest fee, or hard efficiency numbers.


#RealEstateDevelopment #Architecture #Developers #FamilyOffice #Investors #FamilyOfficeInvesting #RealEstateInvesting #PrivateCapital #IRR #Dubai #Riyadh #Returns

Development Execution Partner for Family Offices & Investors | Dubai & Riyadh | Structuring Real Estate Investments

I’m seeing two bedrooms at 850 sqft and one bedrooms at 500 sqft being pushed as “the new normal”.

Developers are shrinking unit sizes to keep the ticket price “affordable” while pushing the price per square foot to record levels.

On paper, it looks good.
Lower ticket. Faster absorption. Better IRR.

In reality, you are creating assets that:
 • Are harder to live in long term
 • Attract short term or transient occupants
 • Risk faster obsolescence 

People are not buying a price tag.
They are buying a home they can actually live in.

Space for a dining table
A proper wardrobe
Storage
A child’s desk
Privacy between bedrooms and living areas

If the only way your project works is by cutting 10 to 15% of the area out of every unit, you don’t have a design problem. 

You have a land price, concept, or capital structure problem.

#Dubai #RealEstateDevelopment #Developers #Investors #Apartments #Design

I keep seeing 20% IRR on decks that would be lucky to hit 8% in real life.

Most of the problem is not in the spreadsheet. 
It is in the assumptions no one wants to challenge.

Here is where IRR gets destroyed in execution.


Cost fantasy

One cost per square foot for everything.
No allowance for façade complexity, podiums, basements, MEP, fire life safety, coordination.

Clients want to assign a star architect and still execute at 400 AED/sqft.

Then the first real pre tender estimate arrives and blows the model.


Timeline fantasy

Copy paste timelines. 
30 months for towers and master plans, 18 for midrise, 12 for villas.

No real look at approvals, design iterations, authority comments, value engineering.

An extra 12 months will kill IRR faster than any marble upgrade.


Exit fantasy

Sales velocity assumed from a “strong market”.

Sales prices set on the architect’s brand, not on what buyers can actually pay at that location and ticket size.

New developers think they can exit like established players who already have a brand, a track record and a sales machine.

No serious view on product fit, competition, absorption or who is actually buying at that ticket size.

Cash flow shifts right. Returns collapse.

None of this is solved by a prettier deck.

It is solved by doing the hard work up front. Stress testing cost, time and exit. Then designing a building that the numbers can actually support.

#RealEstate #RealEstateInvesting #RealEstateDevelopment
 #PrivateCapital #FamilyOffice #FamilyOfficeInvesting
 #InstitutionalInvestors #UHNW #CapitalAllocation
 #DevelopmentPartner #Dubai #Riyadh #GCCInvestors
 #RealAssets #AlternativeInvestments

Everyone blames the contractor. No one blames the client or his team.
The real problem starts long before tender. At acquisition.

Who is advising the client?
What is their background?

Most of the time it is finance and investment teams building a model with:

One “standard” construction cost
One typical timeline for towers
Another for midrise
A third for low rise

Then they try to squeeze the design into those assumptions.

Six months later, reality shows up.
But no one wants to admit the assumptions were wrong.

Detailed design is completed.
Pre tender estimate lands.
Everyone is “shocked”.

At that point it is too late to redesign properly.

So what happens?

Negotiations with the contractor start.
More squeezing.

Real cost is higher than the model.
Real timeline is longer than the model.
Quality is the first thing sacrificed.

And then everyone blames the contractor.

In most cases, the contractor is not the root problem.
The root problem is early assumptions that never matched the actual project.

That is when you see things like:

Open book marble replaced with standard ceramic
Walnut wood replaced with paint
Cut to size mechanically fixed cladding replaced with small standard panels

This is not value engineering.
This is correcting a fantasy spreadsheet with real life.

This is exactly the problem we solve for clients.

We get involved at land acquisition and concept stage.
We stress test cost, timeline, and sales assumptions against real design, procurement, and construction realities.

When you do that early, the contractor is not your scapegoat.
He is your delivery partner on a project that was realistic from day one.

#RealEstateDevelopment #Dubai #Riyadh #Construction #Developers #Investors #ProjectManagement #CostControl #ValueEngineering #FamilyOffice

Great launch yesterday!
Congratulations to Imtiaz Developments and Zaha Hadid Architects .

 #Dubai #RealEstate #Imtiaz #ZahaHadidArchitects #Development

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taplio

The Battle

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Jad Bardawil

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taplio

The Battle

Umair Tariq

Jad Bardawil

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Umair Tariq's LinkedIn Performance

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