The Founder

Mr Agha Hasan Abedi, founder and President of the Bank of Credit and Commerce International (BCCI), established the Bank in Luxembourg in 1972. At its peak, BCCI operated in 73 countries. A visionary banker, Abedi anticipated many of the challenges the Global South would face in the twenty-first century and developed a new generation of international bankers from developing countries to advance within a system long dominated by former Western colonial banks. Allegations of wrongdoing, which were not generally associated with personal enrichment, should be considered alongside his major contributions to banking, education, professional training, research, health and agriculture for the benefit of the Third World. In 1991, Western central banks led by the Bank of England abruptly closed BCCI.