Mr Mahtabur Rahman, President of Bangladesh Business Council in Dubai, Chairman of Al Haramain Group and Chairman NRB Bank, is the first Non-Resident Bangladeshi (NRB) businessman to receive the UAE Gold Visa

Dubai, United Arab Emirates - 17 June 2019:  Mr Mohammed Mahtabur Rahman, Chairman and Managing Director of Al Haramain Group of Companies, Chairman of NRB Bank Ltd (Bangladesh) and President of Bangladesh Business Council in Dubai, UAE, is the first Non-Resident Bangladeshi to have been awarded a UAE Gold Visa, as per the latest announcement by the UAE government to extend the honour to distinguished investors, highly-skilled professionals and scientists, etc.
  
 The recognition comes as Al Haramain Group celebrates 38 years of its presence in the UAE.
  
 Mohammed Mahtabur Rahman is a seasoned businessman and involved in a broad range of business and trade ventures around the world. A far-sighted person, he has diversified business interests in perfumery, banking, healthcare, education tea, and hospitality, etc.
  
 His group owns Al Haramain Perfumes, one of the largest fragrance manufacturers in the Middle East region, Al Haramain Tea Co Ltd and Al Haramain Hospital Pvt Ltd.
  
 “I thank His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE Presdent, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai and His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, for their visionary leadership that makes the UAE a land of opportunity not only for the UAE nationals but for nationals of more than 200 countries who call the UAE their home,” Mohammed Mahtabur Rahman, Chairman of Al Haramain Group, Chairman of NRB Bank and President of Bangladesh Business Council in Dubai, UAE, said.
  
 “The Gold Visa is an honour for me and my country Bangladesh. This will encourage us to investment more in to the UAE economy and help the UAE economy expand more. We are grateful to the leadership and people of the UAE for allowing us great economic opportunity and honour.”
  
 Al Haramain Group, which has diversified business interests in perfumes,  tea, banking, education, healthcare and hospitality sectors, currently owns more than 20 business establishments across the GCC, Bangladesh, Malaysia, the United Kingdom, United States and other countries with more than 100 branches directly employing more than 1,000 professionals and employees.
  
 Mahtabur Rahman is also a seasoned banker, having been associated with a number of financial institutions. He is the current Chairman of NRB Bank Ltd– one of the three lenders allocated for Non-Resident Bangladeshis (NRBs).
  
 He was ranked the top Commercially Important Person (CIP) for five consecutive years 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016 by the Government of Bangladesh.
  
 He was also awarded the prestigious Bangladesh Bank Remittance Award' consecutively for 5 years 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017 in recognition of his highest remittance/investment into Bangladesh.
  
 Besides, he is associated with a number of business entities, including Al Arafah Islami Bank Ltd, University of Asia Pacific and Beani Bazar Cancer Hospital, to name a few.
  
 He has also delivered Al Haramain Hospital Pvt Ltd – the largest healthcare facility in Sylhet – spreading across an area of 120,000 square feet to provide better healthcare services to the needy. The 12-storey hospital installed with ultra-modern medical/diagnostic equipments. He is the Chairman of the hospital.
  
 From a very modest beginning, Rahman has today emerged as one of the most successful Bangladeshi entrepreneurs globally. His road to success is a source of inspiration to many NRBs especially the younger generation engaged in business. His remarkable achievements could be attributed to his vision, hard work, carefully planned strategy, realistic targets and proper management at every stage.
  
 Hailing from a traditional family in Sylhet, Bangladesh, Mahtabur Rahman was born in 1958 and completed his education in Sylhet city. After that, he joined his family business in Saudi Arabia, which was running well in the holly city of Makkah since 1970.
  
 Rahman learned the techniques of his family business from his father the late Kazi Abdul Haque and mastered himself in the field of fragrance. He had a vision to develop, explore and expand his family business from Makkah to new destinations. As the fragrance business was booming, Mahtabur Rahman opened their first showroom in Dubai in 1981.
  
 After foreseeing the potential Fragrance Markets in the GCC and the Middle East and North Africa region, he moved his entire operation and manufacturing units to the UAE and built the modern and well equipped Head Office fitted with ORACLE-ERP Server in an area of 33,000 square feet and also established a factory in the UAE over an area of around 180,000 square feet, which grew into a state-of-the-art manufacturing unit. 
  
 “So, we decided to shift our business base in the UAE in the early 1980s. In 1982, we set up our Agarwood processing Attar manufacturing plant in Ajman. This helped us reduce costs as well as multiply output. Due to quality of our products, our reputation started to spread and our sales started to pick up. We then started to add new retail outlets,” Mr Rahman says.
  
 “It was around 1992-93, that I was looking for a piece of land to develop a perfume factory. I was offered the land by His Highness Shaikh Humaid bin Rashid Al Nuaimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Ajman, in the new industrial area in Ajman. I found the place empty with nothing but sand.
  
 “We continued to grow our business and it kept multiplying every few years. We have so far invested more than Dh100 million in our factory in Ajman. Today, we produce enough perfumes to penetrate over 60 countries across the world with three good brands – Al Haramain, Al Halal and R&R Perfumes – that cater to a wide diverse customer base and different tastes.”
  
 In 2011, he founded Bangladesh Business Council in Dubai – the only registered business group for Bangladeshi business community to help strengthen bilateral economic relations between Bangladesh and the UAE.
  
 In 2012, Mahtabur Rahman joined an elite group of NRB investors to set up the NRB Bank – the first of its kind lender in Bangladeshi economy – that is a bank by the NRBs, of the NRBs and for the NRBs.
  
 In 2014, the International University of Morality conferred upon him an Honorary Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in World Peace and Morality Business Administration in recognition of his contribution to business and economic activities.
  
 A benevolent donor, he supports educational and charitable institutions in Bangladesh. By his own initiatives, in Bangladesh and outside the country, he constructed and built innumerable institutions, enterprises and ventures that are flourishing both in Bangladesh and outside the country creating a lot jobs to the job-seekers and rehabilitate the jobless thousands of youths. 
  
 In 2019, he led the formation of the NRB CIP Association to promote the economic contribution of the NRB Commercially Important Persons (CIPs) and became the Chairman of the NRB CIP Association.