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Mr. Najafi is a seasoned investor who plays a critical role in developing founders and management. Over the course of his 30+ year career, he has acquired over 30 businesses, many in sectors that are underserved or undergoing rapid transformation. He is CEO and owner of Najafi Companies, an international private investment firm with holdings in sports, media, technology, consumer, and real estate sectors across several countries. With internally generated capital, the firm makes highly selective investments in companies with strong management teams. Additionally, Najafi serves as Vice Chairman for the Phoenix Suns, Vice Chairman of McLaren Racing, and Governor on the board of the National Basketball Association.

Najafi’s personal story has inspired him to be active in the community: at age 12, he immigrated to the U.S. from Iran without speaking a word of English and learned by watching a lot of TV – including the NBA finals (especially the Suns against the Celtics in 1976). Today, he is a Director on the Smithsonian Institution National Board and has served on several philanthropic boards and civic organizations, including the University of California – Berkeley Foundation Board, Phoenix Symphony, Phoenix Metropolitan Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, Chair of the Board of Trustees of Phoenix Country Day School, and Arizona State University’s Committee for Design Excellence.

He is founder of Social Venture Partners Arizona (a pooled, philanthropic fund). Najafi has also formed Mission Advancement (a SPAC committed to acquiring a company that shares his commitment to diversity and equity) and, separately, together with his wife, Cheryl, has committed $10 million to the NBA Foundation to further the Foundation’s mission to drive economic empowerment for Black communities through employment and career advancement.

Najafi received a BA from University of California, Berkeley, and a Masters in Business Economics from Harvard University. He is active with the Chief Executive and Young Presidents’ Organizations Gold.