WHEN Amit Bhatia announced he was stepping down as QPR chairman in November, it was a sign of the ever-growing workload of the multi-faceted businessman and philanthropist. “The decision has been made with a very heavy heart [but] with the best interests of the club in mind,” said Bhatia. “Being chairman of QPR is a role I have held and served with immense pride. However, I fully recognise the responsibility of the position and the importance of a greater presence, not only at matches but also, where possible, on a day-to-day basis.
“Due to ever-increasing responsibilities and commitments on my time, it is now proving challenging for me to dedicate as much time to this position as is required and deserved.” Bhatia, who has been involved with the club for more than 16 seasons, since 2007 – initially as vice chairman and subsequently as chairman for the past five years – remains on the board and the Bhatia family entered into an additional three-year commercial agreement which will see the South Africa Road Stand at the club’s Loftus Road ground renamed The Bhatia Stand. “While I am stepping down from the role of chairman, my family and I remain as passion ate about QPR as we have ever been and will continue to attend matches as often as possible, as well as support the club to the best of our ability,” said Bhatia. “QPR is so special to my entire family and we are hugely honoured to work with the club for the renaming of the South Africa Road Stand. “Sponsorships are an important revenue stream for all football clubs and this partnership allows us as a family to contribute further to the club.” Bhatia’s most recent business venture saw him invest in machine learning-led decarbonisation platform Ecolibrium.
The company raised $5 million during the funding round which was co-led by Bhatia‘s Swordfish Investments, alongside several strategic investors. Earlier, Swordfish Investments funded a US based tech start-up called Tava Health, which provides mental health support services to em ployees of companies. Bhatia’s firm invested in several companies that are working on innovative solutions to address climate change and other environmental challenges. Given the diverse portfolio of businesses and investments held by Swordfish Investments, the company continues to expand its portfolio through new investments and partnerships. As well as sport, Bhatia’s interests span across sectors such as finance, construction, and property. Born in London, Bhatia was educated in Delhi at Columba’s School until 1995, followed by Dulwich College in London and at the British School in Delhi in 1997. He attended Cornell University where he studied economics. He has since remained in volved in alumni matters, now serving on Cor nell’s External Advisory Council for Internalisation. He has lectured at the university’s John son School for MBA students. The 44-year-old began his career at Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley in New York and then Credit Suisse First Boston in London.
Then in 2014, he was one of the founding partners of Swordfish Investments, a May fair-based private equity/venture fund, and Swordfish Capital Management, an investment management company in 2014. The company has gone on to invest in education, media, telecoms, financial services, technology, consumer goods and real estate. Bhatia’s businessmen acumen has led to a list of successful investments, including in Finnish start-up Supercell, which developed the epic combat strategy game Clash of Clans. The value of his $500,000 (£369,000) stake has increased manifold when Japanese conglomerate Softbank bought a 50 per cent stake in 2013, valuing the company at $3 billion. One of Bhatia’s great entrepreneurial successes has been Hope Construction Materials, which was the UK’s largest independent building materials business when it was sold to Breedon plc in 2016. Bhatia joined the board of the newly formed Breedon Group as a director and currently serves the company as non executive chairman.
Additionally, he served on the Advisory Board of Metro Bank in the UK. He also serves as an executive director of Summix, a property company specialising in development projects across the UK and Ireland. He over sees global investor relations and public affairs at the London-based developer and has been instrumental in launching in 2017 the Summix Capital fund to further enhance their ability to deliver larger and more complex projects. Bhatia is the scion of a wealthy Delhi real estate clan and son-in-law of billionaire steel ty coon Lakshmi Mittal. However, his identity has become that of a successful and influential businessman that he has become on his own. One step to doing that was when he bought a stake in QPR. “My whole life I have been involved in sport – cricket is obviously the number one sport in India so I played it to a quite high level. Then I started to play a bit of tennis and competed at Junior Wimbledon. Now I play golf, a bit of football and a lot of squash. I play anything that I can,” he said. “The club felt like an unpolished diamond that just needed a bit of nurturing and caring.
There are a lot of people, everyone from the management to the fans, who I felt wanted good things for QPR and I think it has the potential to be great,” he said. Bhatia continued his support for football development in India through the Ashok Bhatia Football Academy, which was established in memory of his father. The academy provides training and support for young foot ballers in India. On the importance of community engagement for football clubs, he said: “I think it’s absolutely essential that football clubs engage with their local communities. They have a unique ability to bring people together and inspire positive change, and I believe that clubs have a responsibility to use that power for good.” Bhatia continued his philanthropic work through the Bhatia Foundation, which he established in 2007. In 2021, the foundation donated funds to several causes, including education, healthcare, and disaster relief efforts.
Bhatia and his wife Vanisha announced a donation of £3.5 million to support the development of a new healthcare centre in Lon don. The donation was made to the Royal Brompton & Harefield Hospitals Charity, which supports research and care at the Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals. “I believe that philanthropy has the power to make a real difference in the world. Whether it’s through supporting education, healthcare, or other important causes, I think that giving back is one of the most meaningful things we can do as individuals and as a society,” he says.