Biography
Bavaguthu Raghuram Shetty is an Indian-born businessman and former billionaire, the founder and acquirer of a number of companies based in the United Arab Emirates, including Abu Dhabi–based NMC Health, Neopharma, BRS Ventures, and Finablr.
Early Life
Shetty was born at the family's ancestral estate, Bavaguthu House Udupi on 1 August 1942 into a Tulu speaking, Bunt family, the son of Shambhu Shetty and his wife Koosamma Shetty. His mother tongue is Tulu and he studied in a Kannada medium school. Shetty completed his pharmaceutical education from Manipal in India and also served as the Vice-Chairman of the Municipal Council in Udupi. He married Chandrakumari Shetty and has four children.
Career
Shetty immigrated to the UAE in the year 1973. After working as the country's first medical representative, he founded New Medical Centre Health (NMC) in 1975 to fill the need for personalized, cost-effective healthcare accessible to all. At that time, his wife was the only doctor in the clinic. NMC is now the largest private healthcare provider in the UAE with over four million patients annually across 45 facilities spread over 12 cities and 8 countries, including UAE, KSA, Oman, Spain, Italy, Denmark, Colombia, and Brazil. It is the first healthcare company from the Gulf Cooperation Countries (GCC) and the first company from Abu Dhabi to be listed on the premium segment of the London Stock Exchange and was part of the coveted FTSE 100 Index. Consequent to the request from the NMC board of directors and an on-going investigation of potential financial irregularities, the company was de-listed from London Stock Exchange and was removed from FTSE 100 index. Multiple reputable sources describe Dr. B. R. Shetty as the founder or the individual who established UAE Exchange in 1980 to facilitate remittance services for expatriates sending funds to their families in their home countries.. By 2016, it had expanded into over 31 countries and had approximately 800 direct offices. In 2014, it did over US$50 billion collectively in money remittance and exchange volumes. Shetty acquired Travelex, a major foreign exchange company, in 2014. Travelex has a global footprint including 1500 stores and 1300 ATMs across 27 countries. In December 2020 it was announced that Shetty had agreed to sell his majority stake in Finablr, the parent group for UAE Exchange and Travelex, to Prism Group AG and Royal Strategic Partners, a UAE linked investment fund.UAE-Israeli partnership agrees deal to buy Finablr Financial Times, Simeon Kerr, Mehul Srivastava and Cynthia O’Murchu, 17 December 2020 In 2003, Shetty founded NMC Neopharma, a UAE-based pharmaceutical manufacturer. Inaugurated by the then President of India, A. P. J. Abdul Kalam in Abu Dhabi, Neopharma is centered on using the concept of modular manufacturing following global benchmarks in manufacturing technology and putting in place efficient control mechanisms. Neopharma has a research and development wing and works to provide quality medicines at affordable prices. The company also contracts manufacturing for international pharmaceutical companies as well as generic brands for companies including, but not limited to, Merck,