Spear’s Review

Coutts executive director Nima Naghibi says his practice is built on a principle that many Western-trained bankers overlook: with Middle Eastern clients, trust comes before business. ‘The thing that a lot of people get wrong is the speed at which you think the relationship or transaction is going to happen,’ he tells Spear’s. ‘It’s very much a case of winning their trust first. Once you’re past that, they open up on the business side – and once that happens, you’re the first name on the list.’

In addition to investment and portfolio management, Naghibi focuses on what he calls the quieter, more consequential matters: succession planning, next-generation readiness and business strategy. With an estimated trillion dollars in Middle Eastern assets set to transfer to the next generation by 2030, the urgency of those conversations is only growing.

A distinctive thread in his practice is lending against trophy assets – super yachts, jets and prime property – that clients allow to sit idle while depreciating. His argument is straightforward: ‘Make the asset work harder.’