Hassan Bouhadi was made chairman of the LIA last October
Hassan Bouhadi, the chairman of
Libya’s $77bn national wealth fund, the Libyan Investment
Authority, doesn’t want his job to be this interesting.
Ideally, he would be in Libya’s capital Tripoli, quietly stewarding the
country’s wealth, smoothing out the public finances of an economy that
is 97pc dependent on volatile oil revenues.
Instead, he is sitting in a London hotel, in between missions to
Washington and Tunis. After that, he will return to Malta, where the LIA
has been forced to move due to the violence in Tripoli.
As well as trying to keep his own struggling government and the international community on side, Mr Bouhadi is facing a leadership challenge from the LIA’s former chair.
And last but not least, he is attempting to drive forward two multi-billion-dollar lawsuits against Goldman Sachs and Société Générale, two of the biggest banks in the world.
If Mr Bouhadi, who last October became the third chairman of the LIA in a matter of months, is finding the job stressful, it doesn’t show.
“After 40 years of dictatorship, we are trying to create a new Libya, where we can see that a democratic process is taking shape,” he says.
“It’s tough, but at the end of the day this is what we’ve been appointed for. It is a very, very challenging time for Libya as a whole, but we’ve decided to do the right thing.”
Libya has struggled for stability since Muammar Gaddafi was ousted in 2011 (AP)
It wasn’t supposed to be so difficult. When the LIA was set up, in 2006, the country had recently been brought in from the international wilderness. Sanctions were lifted, allowing the country to diversify away from oil money, and bankers rushed in, looking for a piece of the action.
However, things started to go sour quickly. LIA officials invested billions in derivative trades that went awry in 2008, when the financial crisis shocked markets. Many individuals viewed the fund as a conduit to personal gain. And then, in 2011, revolution flared up.
Although Muammar Gaddafi was swiftly removed, much of the country was damaged. Weapons became an everyday sight, and the presence of militias has held back democracy since.
Now, the country is divided between Islamists based in Tripoli in the west and the internationally-recognised government, which has been forced to leave the capital for the port of Tobruk in the far east. Parts of the country are occupied by Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, or Isil, which has exported its terrorism to the Mediterranean’s shores.
In a way, it is a tribute to the determination of those at the LIA that the institution has carried on, albeit with something of a revolving door at its helm (several individuals have been ousted for links to the old regime, among other reasons).
Mr Bouhadi says the institution has done its utmost to remain non-partisan, which may explain its stability. “We are actually one of the few institutions in Libya where we still maintain one board and a governance structure that is Libyan, that is non-partisan, that looks at the Libyan institutions rather than Tripoli, Tobruk and so forth,” he says.
Mr Bouhadi, a graduate of University College London and Imperial College, is an engineer by trade. Before joining the LIA, he worked for American infrastructure giants GE and Bechtel. He says, though, that like many of his compatriots, he felt compelled to help rebuild Libya after the revolution.
“During [the Gaddafi era] we all longed to work in Libya, and unfortunately the political set-up at the time made it hard. It was limiting how much you could do under that atmosphere,” he says.
“There are a lot of Libyans like me who were privileged to have a western education, who worked in a governance structure, that knew about compliance and transparency, and we wanted to bring that. I saw myself living in comfort in Dubai, while my friends and family were in Libya, so for me it just did not match with our aspiration. So I took a decision to take my responsibility and try to make a change. We couldn’t wait for Libya to be handed to us on a golden plate.”
The country has been marred by infighting in recent months (AFP)
In the midst of the nation’s turmoil, the LIA has managed to lodge, and maintain, two enormous legal cases in London against Goldman and SocGen.
The cases, worth $1.2bn and $2.3bn respectively, have become something of a corporate thriller, involving allegations of exotic bribes, senior Goldman executives, and even Sophie Wellesley – the wife of singer James Blunt – who worked for the LIA before the uprising, as a witness.
The LIA accuses Goldman of pocketing huge advisory fees while hoodwinking officials into investing $1.2bn in complex derivative transactions in 2008, which became practically worthless when the crisis struck. SocGen, meanwhile, is alleged to have funnelled huge bribes to individuals, including people close to the Gaddafis, in order to push through trades that also went sour.
Both banks reject the allegations. Goldman has argued that the LIA officials were sophisticated, well-trained professionals, who could not possibly, as the fund contends, be unaware that they were getting into risky transactions. Mr Bouhadi, though, says no sovereign wealth fund would willingly get involved in them.
“Sovereign funds are very conservative – we go to the extent whereby we do investments just to beat inflation, that’s how conservative we are,” he says. “It would be ridiculous for such institutions to take such a large amount of money and end up with zero, when it’s something that belongs to the future generations of Libya.
“We’re very determined that someone is held accountable. For the wealth of the nation to be squandered and for the $1.2bn to end up as zero, I think someone has to answer.”
Mr Bouhadi is determined to win the case, but events have not gone as smoothly as he might have hoped. In March, despite a concerted effort from the LIA, the fund’s law firm, Enyo, walked away, after apparent frustrations in dealing with certain members of the fund.
Mr Bouhadi’s team, attempting to protect proceedings, appointed a new firm, Keystone Law, but its attempts to continue the cases were dealt a blow last month, when Abdulrahman Benyezza, LIA chairman before Mr Bouhadi, tried to seize power by appointing his own lawyers and claiming authority over the case.
Mr Benyezza has now relinquished his claim to lead the LIA in favour of Abdulmagid Breish, his predecessor as chair, but Mr Bouhadi’s team will still have to see off the legal challenge.
Mr Breish, who claims to have been reinstated as head of the LIA by Libya's Court of Appeal, said:"I am aware that, during my absence, other persons attempted to take control of the LIA, serving to challenge the independence and neutrality of the organisation.
"There are rogue directors who set up offices without permission. They use money that I assume they obtained illegally and we will be taking legal action against them."
Goldman Sachs is being sued by the LIA in London (Reuters)
Mr Bouhadi says the intervention is “unfortunate”, but dismisses Mr Breish’s claim as a Libyan anachronism, a hangover from the old regime when institutions were defined by individuals rather than their democratic mandate.
“Some individuals have the idea that they need to be in power no matter what,” he says, rejecting claims that the lawsuits are in a “state of chaos”, as a recent court hearing heard.
For all the efforts that have been made to keep the LIA stable, however, the country’s 6m people are unlikely to see any of the proceeds until there is a stable government, and a semblance of peace.
Almost a third of the fund’s $77bn of assets are international investments in bonds, equities and so forth, which are frozen at Libya’s behest, and will remain so until a political solution is agreed.
In the meantime, Mr Bouhadi says his job is to “protect and maintain” the wealth, and that the LIA is able to plan only a week or two in advance.
Should stability result, billions are expected to be invested in infrastructure and education, creating a private sector that simply did not exist under Gaddafi.
Until that happens, he certainly has plenty of work to do.
“After 40 years of dictatorship, we are trying to create a new Libya, where we can see that a democratic process is taking shape,” he says.
“It’s tough, but at the end of the day this is what we’ve been appointed for. It is a very, very challenging time for Libya as a whole, but we’ve decided to do the right thing.”
Libya has struggled for stability since Muammar Gaddafi was ousted in 2011 (AP)
It wasn’t supposed to be so difficult. When the LIA was set up, in 2006, the country had recently been brought in from the international wilderness. Sanctions were lifted, allowing the country to diversify away from oil money, and bankers rushed in, looking for a piece of the action.
However, things started to go sour quickly. LIA officials invested billions in derivative trades that went awry in 2008, when the financial crisis shocked markets. Many individuals viewed the fund as a conduit to personal gain. And then, in 2011, revolution flared up.
Although Muammar Gaddafi was swiftly removed, much of the country was damaged. Weapons became an everyday sight, and the presence of militias has held back democracy since.
Now, the country is divided between Islamists based in Tripoli in the west and the internationally-recognised government, which has been forced to leave the capital for the port of Tobruk in the far east. Parts of the country are occupied by Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, or Isil, which has exported its terrorism to the Mediterranean’s shores.
In a way, it is a tribute to the determination of those at the LIA that the institution has carried on, albeit with something of a revolving door at its helm (several individuals have been ousted for links to the old regime, among other reasons).
Mr Bouhadi says the institution has done its utmost to remain non-partisan, which may explain its stability. “We are actually one of the few institutions in Libya where we still maintain one board and a governance structure that is Libyan, that is non-partisan, that looks at the Libyan institutions rather than Tripoli, Tobruk and so forth,” he says.
Mr Bouhadi, a graduate of University College London and Imperial College, is an engineer by trade. Before joining the LIA, he worked for American infrastructure giants GE and Bechtel. He says, though, that like many of his compatriots, he felt compelled to help rebuild Libya after the revolution.
“During [the Gaddafi era] we all longed to work in Libya, and unfortunately the political set-up at the time made it hard. It was limiting how much you could do under that atmosphere,” he says.
“There are a lot of Libyans like me who were privileged to have a western education, who worked in a governance structure, that knew about compliance and transparency, and we wanted to bring that. I saw myself living in comfort in Dubai, while my friends and family were in Libya, so for me it just did not match with our aspiration. So I took a decision to take my responsibility and try to make a change. We couldn’t wait for Libya to be handed to us on a golden plate.”
The country has been marred by infighting in recent months (AFP)
In the midst of the nation’s turmoil, the LIA has managed to lodge, and maintain, two enormous legal cases in London against Goldman and SocGen.
The cases, worth $1.2bn and $2.3bn respectively, have become something of a corporate thriller, involving allegations of exotic bribes, senior Goldman executives, and even Sophie Wellesley – the wife of singer James Blunt – who worked for the LIA before the uprising, as a witness.
The LIA accuses Goldman of pocketing huge advisory fees while hoodwinking officials into investing $1.2bn in complex derivative transactions in 2008, which became practically worthless when the crisis struck. SocGen, meanwhile, is alleged to have funnelled huge bribes to individuals, including people close to the Gaddafis, in order to push through trades that also went sour.
Both banks reject the allegations. Goldman has argued that the LIA officials were sophisticated, well-trained professionals, who could not possibly, as the fund contends, be unaware that they were getting into risky transactions. Mr Bouhadi, though, says no sovereign wealth fund would willingly get involved in them.
“Sovereign funds are very conservative – we go to the extent whereby we do investments just to beat inflation, that’s how conservative we are,” he says. “It would be ridiculous for such institutions to take such a large amount of money and end up with zero, when it’s something that belongs to the future generations of Libya.
“We’re very determined that someone is held accountable. For the wealth of the nation to be squandered and for the $1.2bn to end up as zero, I think someone has to answer.”
Mr Bouhadi is determined to win the case, but events have not gone as smoothly as he might have hoped. In March, despite a concerted effort from the LIA, the fund’s law firm, Enyo, walked away, after apparent frustrations in dealing with certain members of the fund.
Mr Bouhadi’s team, attempting to protect proceedings, appointed a new firm, Keystone Law, but its attempts to continue the cases were dealt a blow last month, when Abdulrahman Benyezza, LIA chairman before Mr Bouhadi, tried to seize power by appointing his own lawyers and claiming authority over the case.
Mr Benyezza has now relinquished his claim to lead the LIA in favour of Abdulmagid Breish, his predecessor as chair, but Mr Bouhadi’s team will still have to see off the legal challenge.
Mr Breish, who claims to have been reinstated as head of the LIA by Libya's Court of Appeal, said:"I am aware that, during my absence, other persons attempted to take control of the LIA, serving to challenge the independence and neutrality of the organisation.
"There are rogue directors who set up offices without permission. They use money that I assume they obtained illegally and we will be taking legal action against them."
Goldman Sachs is being sued by the LIA in London (Reuters)
Mr Bouhadi says the intervention is “unfortunate”, but dismisses Mr Breish’s claim as a Libyan anachronism, a hangover from the old regime when institutions were defined by individuals rather than their democratic mandate.
“Some individuals have the idea that they need to be in power no matter what,” he says, rejecting claims that the lawsuits are in a “state of chaos”, as a recent court hearing heard.
For all the efforts that have been made to keep the LIA stable, however, the country’s 6m people are unlikely to see any of the proceeds until there is a stable government, and a semblance of peace.
Almost a third of the fund’s $77bn of assets are international investments in bonds, equities and so forth, which are frozen at Libya’s behest, and will remain so until a political solution is agreed.
In the meantime, Mr Bouhadi says his job is to “protect and maintain” the wealth, and that the LIA is able to plan only a week or two in advance.
Should stability result, billions are expected to be invested in infrastructure and education, creating a private sector that simply did not exist under Gaddafi.
Until that happens, he certainly has plenty of work to do.
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