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Kabir Mulchandani

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Kabir Mulchandani
Born (1972-10-06) 6 October 1972 (age 52)
Mumbai, India
NationalityIndian
EducationStanford University, Phillips Exeter Academy
SpouseNadia Zaal
Websitekabirmulchandani.com

Kabir Mulchandani is an Indian-born, Dubai-based real estate and hospitality businessman and philanthropist. He is the Founder and Chairman of FIVE Holdings, which includes FIVE Hotels and Resorts; FIVE Palm Jumeirah, FIVE Jumeirah Village, FIVE Zurich, FIVE LUXE, and FIVE Music along with The Pacha Group.

He is ranked number 1623 in the Forbes list of the World’s Billionaires List: The Richest in 2024 with an estimated net worth of $2 billion.[1] In 2024, Mulchandani ranked #20 on The Richest Billionaires in the Middle East by Forbes Middle East, #24 on the Top 100 Travel and Tourism leaders in 2023[2] and ranked the #11 of 2024,[3] and #34 on the Most Impactful Real Estate Leaders by Forbes Middle East.[4] In 2024, Mulchandani was also #10 in the Power 150 of Top Developers in the Middle East by Construction Week.[5]

He is ranked as one of the Richest and Most Powerful Indians in the Persian Gulf region.[6][7][8][9]

Early life and education

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For the 1992-93 school year, he pursued his undergraduate studies at Stanford University, in the United States, where he majored in industrial engineering, and earlier graduated from Phillips Exeter Academy. Prior to that he attended the elite Cathedral and John Connon School in Mumbai.[citation needed]

Career

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Baron Electronics

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Mulchandani served at Baron International and Baron Electronics, two Mumbai-based, family-owned firms that specialised in the distribution and sale of consumer electronics.[10]

SKAI Real Estate

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In 2011, he founded SKAI Holdings, a Dubai-based real estate investment firm. In 2013, SKAI revealed plans for a luxurious hotel on Dubai's man made Palm Jumeirah, and signed up Viceroy, the Los Angeles based hotel management company to brand and manage the property.

He was quickly celebrated as the comeback king of Dubai in the local media,[11] along with Aloki Batra,[9][12][13] CEO, FIVE Hospitality and The Pacha Group, Jaydeep Anand, Group CFO CSO, FIVE and COO and Nabil Akiki, CEO of FIVE Development.[14]

At the end of 2016, SKAI officially completed building the $1.17 billion Palm Jumeirah Dubai hotel with 477 rooms and 221 residences.[15]

FIVE Hotels and Resorts

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In 2017, Mulchandani changed his company's name from SKAI to FIVE.[16] The Viceroy Palm Jumeirah hotel opened on 31 March 2017.[17] In June 2017, FIVE terminated Viceroy as its hotel manager, and the Viceroy Palm Jumeirah was rebranded as FIVE Palm Jumeirah.[18] The hotel including 475 rooms and apartments, 222 luxury residences, the beach, spa, salon and 14 F&B venues.[19]

FIVE Jumeirah Village opened in September 2019 with 501 hotel rooms and residences and 6 F&B venues.[20][21] FIVE Zurich opened in 2022 with 45 luxurious suites, 42 suite sized lifestyle rooms and more recently added, 62 Amazing Rooms.[22][23]

In March 2024, FIVE LUXE was opened with 222 hotel rooms and suites, and 222 residences at FIVE LUXE and 54 residences in Sensoria, 7 F&B venues, spa, gym and Kid's Club.[24][25][26][27] With a private beach club Playa Pacha developed by Ibizan brand, The Pacha Group brought to the Jumeirah Beach Residence Dubai waterfront.[24] The 3 bedroom penthouse within the residential tower, Sensoria was sold for 75 million AED ($20 million).[26][28]

The FIVE brand has been awarded the 8th place for the Best Workplaces in the UAE in 2024, up from its 10th place in 2023, by Great Place To Work as a hotel with some of the happiest employees in the Middle East.[29][30][31]

FIVE Music

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In 2021, FIVE Hotels and Resorts launched its own record label FIVE Music to produce a hand crafted portfolio of the worlds music.[32][33] In 2023, FIVE Music entered into a joint venture with Warner Music Group, which will allow Mulchandani's brand to sign new talent and renowned artists.[34][35]

Alongside the label, FIVE launched the FIVE Music Studio at Dubai's FIVE Palm Jumeirah, which offers a place where producers, musicians and writers can meet and collaborate.[36][37]

Fly FIVE

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In November 2021, Mulchandani and FIVE Holdings purchases the first ACJ TwoTwenty from Airbus and Comlux Group in Switzerland.[38][39][40] The 16-seat jet consists of a dining table for eight passengers, a master suite, and a kitchen, with a full crew on board.[40] The aircraft registered 9H-FIVE, to be pronounced "Nine-Hotel-FIVE" entered the market in May 2023.[41] Combining a bizjet with FIVE hospitality and entertainment.[40] In June 2023, The Guardian named the jet as a private "party jet".[42]

The Pacha Group

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In October 2023, FIVE Holdings completed acquisition of a 100% equity interest in the legendary nightlife entity The Pacha Group, in a landmark deal at an enterprise value of $322.1 million (€302.5 million).[43] The acquisition comprises a range of assets that includes the Pacha Nightclub, Destino Pacha Hotel, El Hotel Pacha, Toy Room Club, and WooMoon Storytellers (Globally) as well as registered trademarks such as the brand name "Pacha" (Globally) and its distinctive logo design featuring cherries (Globally).[44][45] The acquisition was funded through the issuance of a Green Bond and a Revolving Credit Facility (RCF).[46][43]

Sustainability

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Kabir Mulchandani presented at Reuters NEXT in New York City on 30 November 2022.[47] The presentation featured a ready-to-implement net zero electricity building design as part of FIVE Holdings' sustainable development strategy.[48] The tower primarily applies a solar panel façade to generate 103.1% of the building's calculated electricity demand, producing 5,781 Mwh. FIVE consulted international environmental design consultant Atelier 10 and global architectural firm AE7 to design the project. FIVE's net zero electricity tower applies the copyrighted core and shell of FIVE's operational FIVE Jumeirah Village hotel in moving towards a net zero energy model.[47][48] All of the Dubai and Zurich hotels in the FIVE brand are LEED platinum certified for sustainability with FIVE Zurich being the only hotel in Switzerland with this rating at the time of certificate in February 2023.[23][49]

In July 2023, FIVE became the first and only hotel in the UAE to obtain International Renewable Energy Certificate (I-REC) to achieve 100% renewable electricity from Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park and Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA).[50] The solar park is the largest single-site solar park in the world, using the Independent Power Producer (IPP) model. It will have a production capacity of 5,000MW by 2030 with a total investment of AED 50 billion.[51]

Kabir Mulchandani's FIVE Holdings is ranked No 1 Green Developer for sustainable building by Construction Week Middle East for commitment to sustainable construction practices, innovation in green construction, use of renewable energy sources, waste management strategies and their overall impact on reducing carbon emissions.[50]

FIVE is granted an 'A' ESG Rating by Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) evaluated against over 100 criteria across Environmental, Social and Governance topics.[52] FIVE has been provided with the highest ESG rating in the world within the ISS universe as of 23 June 2023.[52] FIVE Palm Jumeirah and FIVE Jumeirah Village became the first hotel in the UAE to obtain International Renewable Energy Certificates (I-RECs) for achieving 100% renewable energy for 2022.[53] All of Mulchandani's Dubai and Zurich hotels have earned LEED Platinum certification through the US Green Building Council.[54][55] FIVE LUXE, FIVE's latest development received its Building Completion Certificate (BCC) and the Group's highest Platinum score to date, 89 Points as of October 2023.[55][56]

Forbes Middle East ranked Mulchandani as one of the Middle East’s Sustainability Leaders in the Travel and Tourism Industry with a top 100 across 12 sectors.[57] In June 2024, FIVE Holdings received an award at the Bonds, Loans & Sukuk Middle East Awards for 'Prestigious High Yield Debt Deal of the Year' for securing a sustainable finance loan via the $350 green bond.[58]

FIVE'S debut Green Bond listing on Nasdaq Dubai

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FIVE Holdings raised $350 million from the five-year green bond, featuring a coupon rate of 9.375%, with maturity set for October 2028.[59] It was listed on Dubai's Nasdaq on 4 October and ISM (London) on 5 October.[60][61]

Philanthropy

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Kabir Mulchandani, who won Philanthropist of the Year at the CEO Middle East Awards 2017, supports a number of charities.[62] In March 2017, his company FIVE launched Project Udaan with the aim of saving a life every day in India. The project provides daily life-saving surgery to children born with congenital heart defects, whose families could otherwise not afford the medical costs.[63] Its programs include supporting the New Faces Charitable Trust, paying for surgery to help children born with facial deformities.[64]

Personal life

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In 2012, he married his second wife Nadia Zaal, one of the most influential Emirati women in the GCC, the couple have three sons and one daughter.[65]

Controversies

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In 2009, Kabir was arrested in Dubai for a highly publicized case of real estate fraud. He was first let out on bail after 140 days, and later acquitted of all these charges in 2010.[66]

It was found by the Supreme Court of Dubai, claimants accused him in order to avoid honoring their financial obligations. The main allegation was directly dismissed by the Public Prosecutor.[67] The second allegation was heard in Dubai Court and judge concluded that the accused did not deceive the plaintiffs in the civil action and was not satisfied with their statements in this regard and finds no credibility in the statements as they are baseless and without evidence supporting them.[68] He was exonerated and was acquitted from all allegations.[66][67]

His legal battle with Viceroy over operator rights of the Palm Jumeirah hotel was highly publicized. Viceroy's termination took place on the same day Viceroy's UAE shareholders announced their plans to wholly own the company. Viceroy's web page has a clear note on it distancing itself from the property as it is run today.

Awards

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Title Award Winner Reference
Philanthropy CEO of the Year CEO Middle East Awards 2017 Kabir Mulchandani, Chairman and group CEO, FIVE Holdings [69]
100 inspiring leaders in the Middle East Arabian Business - Power List 2018 [23]
Leaders in Travel and Tourism Arabian Business - Expo List 2021 Kabir Mulchandani, Chairman, Five Holdings [70]
Indian Power List Kabir Mulchandani, Chairman and group CEO, FIVE Holdings [71]
Indian Power List Arabian Business - Power List 2022 [72]
Top 100 Travel & Tourism Leaders 2023 Forbes Middle East [73]
Indian Power List Arabian Business – Power List 2023 [74]
Indian Aces Arabian Business - Top 50 Indians Powerlist 2023 [75]
Power 100 Construction Week – Power 100 2023 [76]
Forbes #1623 on the World's Richest Billionaires list in 2024 Kabir Mulchandani [1]
Dubai 100 Powerlist Arabian Business February 2024 Kabir Mulchandani, Chairman and group CEO, FIVE Holdings and Pacha Group [77]
Edie Awards 2024 Sustainability Leader of the Year (Finalist) [78]
Indian Aces Arabian Business - Top 50 Indians Powerlist 2024 [79]
Forbes Middle East The Middle East’s Most Impactful Real Estate Leaders [4]
Construction Week Power 150 : Top Developers in the Middle East 2024 Kabir Mulchandani [5]
Bonds, Loans and Sukuk Middle East Awards 2024 High Yield Debt Deal of The Year FIVE Holdings [58]
Skift IDEA Awards Finalist Change Makers FIVE Holdings, Kabir Mulchandani, Founder and Chairman [80]
Inspiring Leaders List Arabian Business – 100 Most Inspiring Leaders 2024 Kabir Mulchandani [81]
Top 100 Travel & Tourism Leaders 2024 Forbes Middle East [3]

References

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