South Asia Investor Review

Pakistani reporter Ahmad  Noorani has alleged  that CPEC Authority Chairman Asim Bajwa's wife Farrukh Zeba is a shareholder in Bajwa family business. Noorani, currently on Alfred Friendly fellowship in the United States,  further alleges  that the value of these holdings has been under-reported by General Asim Bajwa in his declaration of assets that he made recently in his position as Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (SAPM).  What Bajwa family business is Mr. Noorani referring to? It is Bajco, a business that Asim Bajwa's brother Nadeem Bajwa built in the United States. Noorani has made multiple allegations of corruption against CPEC Authority Chairman Asim Bajwa. Of these allegations, the only one that may require further investigation is that General Asim Bajwa may have deliberately understated the value of his wife Farrukh Zeba's shares in Bajco, a company built by Asim Bajwa's brother Nadeem Bajwa who is a self-made millionaire. Undervaluing assets i...

Pakistani reporter  Ahmad Noorani has recently alleged  that "(T)he growth of the Bajwa family’s business empire in the United States and later in Pakistan directly matches the rise in power of retired general Asim Saleem Bajwa, who is now chairman of the country’s massive China-financed infrastructure project and a special assistant to the prime minister". “Out of total 99 companies, 66 are main companies, 33 companies are branch companies of some of the main companies, while five companies are dead now,” Ahmad Noorani alleges, adding that the businesses of the Bajwa family have been put under the umbrella called  Bajco Group . Noorani ignores many well-known Pakistani immigrant success stories in US restaurant franchise business and jumps to the conclusion that Nadeem Bajwa's success must be built on his brother's alleged corruption in Pakistan. Noorani does not offer any evidence to back up his allegations. Papa John's Franchisee Nadeem Bajwa Who is Nade...

British National Crime Agency (NCA) has identified  Pakistan , Nigeria and Russia as the top source countries for money laundering in the United Kingdom, according to  British media reports . The NCA report says the UK is a prime destination for foreign corrupt and politically exposed people (politicians and their families) to launder money. NCA Report Highlights: In its annual assessment of serious and organized crime, the NCA says: “Investment in UK property, particularly in London, continues to be an attractive mechanism to launder funds....As the UK moves towards exiting the EU in March 2019, UK-based businesses may look to increase the amount of trade they have with non-EU countries....We judge this will increase the likelihood that UK businesses will come into contact with corrupt markets, particularly in the developing world, raising the risk they will be drawn into corrupt practices.” Here are some of the key excerpts of the UK  NCA report  titled...