AMIT BHATIA is the founder and managing director of Aybe Capital, formerly known as Swordfish Investments - a multi-asset class permanent capital vehicle.
The 45-year-old businessman and philanthropist has over 20 years of corporate finance and private equity experience. Not only is he at the forefront of numerous business ventures, he is also helping cultivate the next generation of entrepreneurs.
The Amit Bhatia ’01 Global PhD Research Awards at the Einaudi Center for International Studies at Cornell University, funds international fieldwork to help six to seven PHD students annually to complete their dissertations.
The opportunity is open to post-A exam doctoral candidates from all fields and disciplines for whom international fieldwork is critical to their dissertation research.
“When I learned about the challenges graduate students have in securing funding for international research projects, I wanted to help. I wanted to ensure that students eager to study remote or significant areas of our world did not have insurmountable hurdles,” said Bhatia.
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 involved in alumni matters, now serving on Cornell’s External Advisory Council for Internalization. He has lectured at the university’s Johnson School for MBA students.
Bhatia began his career at Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley in New York and then Credit Suisse First Boston in London.
In 2014, he was one of the founding partners of Swordfish Investments, a Mayfair-based private equity/venture fund, and Swordfish Capital Management, an investment management company in 2014.
The company has gone on too invest in education, media, telecoms, financial services, technology, consumer goods and real estate.
Bhatia came to the attention of the general public when he became vice-chairman of QPR football club in 2007 before going to on to become chairman for five years.
Though he stepped down in 2023, he 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.
"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.”
The club remains close to his heart and he publicly thanked manager Marti Cifuentes for keeping them in the Championship last season after they were involved in a relegation battle.
“Incredibly emotional with the result tonight to end the season. I’m so sorry for all the heartache we’ve all been through this season, hopefully in time all that’s left is a memory we’ll talk about with a smile knowing what we lived through,” he said.
“Congratulations to all our players and everyone at the club and thank you to all our fans who put us on their backs and carried us to safety. In Marti we trust!”
Bhatia remains busy on other fronts relating to Aybe Capital’s diverse portfolio of businesses and investments diverse sectors including technology, media, real estate, strategic land, sports, consumer retail and health.
Bhatia’s most recent business venture saw him invest in machine learning-led decarbonisation platform Ecolibrium.
The company raised $5million during the funding round which was co-led by Bhatia, alongside several strategic investors.
Previously, Bhatia was at the forefront of a many 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.
His company also funded a US-based tech start-up called Tava Health, which provides mental health support services to employees of companies.
Bhatia’s firm invested in several companies that are working on innovative solutions to address climate change and other environmental challenges.
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 Breedon Group - a leading producer and supplier of raw earth products and materials - 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 oversees 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 tycoon Lakhsmi Mittal.
However, his identity has become that of a successful and influential businessman that he has become on his own as well as his continuing 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 London. 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.
