Nirav S. Patel is the Chairman of the Board, Chief Executive Officer and co-founder of The Asia Group. He is responsible for the firm’s corporate strategy, digital transformation agenda, and management of a diverse portfolio of industry-leading corporate clients.
Nirav is an entrepreneur with significant experience at the intersection of business and policy. He has founded, invested in, and successfully exited from numerous companies. Drawing from experience across a diverse set of sectors, Nirav is a sought-after corporate counselor to global business leaders and investors seeking to develop strategies that take advantage of and mitigate against downside policy and political risks, forging strategically significant joint ventures and strategic partnerships and dealing with multidimensional “bet the firm” crises.
Nirav is an experienced investor and has served on corporate boards of private and publicly traded businesses. Nirav concurrently serves on the boards of US-India Business Council (USIBC), the non-profit National Association for Urban Debate Leagues, and The Asia Group Foundation.
Previously, Nirav served at the U.S. Department of State from 2009 to 2013, including as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State in the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs. Prior to serving in the State Department, Nirav was a Fellow and the Director of the Asia-Pacific Strategy Program at the bipartisan Center for a New American Security and an Analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. He has authored numerous journal articles, op-eds, reports and is a frequent contributor to leading global news organizations, such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Politico, and a range of outlets across the Indo-Pacific region.
Nirav holds a Master of Arts in International Security Studies from Georgetown University and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of North Texas, where he was a finalist in the national cross-examination policy debate tournament. In his personal life, he is a fitness enthusiast, avid reader, and foodie. He lives with his wife, two sons, and daughter in McLean, Virginia.