Investors Back Away from DP World as CEO's Links to Epstein Scandal Appear
While the shipping world seemed to be far removed from the growing U.S. scandal around convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, logistics giant DP World is now coming under pressure due to revelations about its long-time Chairman and CEO. Two giant institutional investors have announced they are suspending future investments with the company until it addresses the situation.
Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem has led the global giant for nearly 20 years and built its global portfolio. At first, the reporting of his friendship with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein seemed to be prurient curiosity, but as the U.S. Department of Justice continued to release large batches of material, it became clear that it was a long-running friendship that involved messages of a sexual nature and assisting Epstein. DOJ is quick to point out that inclusion in the files is not evidence in and of itself of a crime, but the CEO’s name reportedly appears many times over many years. The friendship appears to have continued after Epstein’s conviction in 2008 and until shortly before he died in 2019.
The pension fund of Quebec, Canada, and the second largest in Canada, La Caisse (Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec), was the first to act. It noted that the individual and the company were separate, but that it would “pause additional capital deployment,” with DP World. It said it expects DP World to address “the situation and take the necessary actions.”
La Caisse, which currently has a portfolio worth US$366 billion, has a relationship with DP World dating back a decade. It announced that it would invest $3.7 billion in 2016 into the company’s ports and terminals. In 2022, it announced another $5 billion, including investments in the Dubai port of Jebel Ali, and in September 2025, reported it would partner with DP World for the Port of Montreal expansion at Contrecoeur.
Today, February 11, the British investment giant British International Investment, with a portfolio valued at over $9 billion, announced it would also be suspending investments with DP World. Reuters reports BII is currently invested in at least four African ports alongside DP World.
Bin Sulayem, age 70, is a prominent Emirati businessman and has a close association with the royal family, which oversees DP World and the country’s other major companies. He reportedly began working at the Jebel Ali port in the 1970s, which was also the origin of DP World. He became chairman of the company in 2007 and CEO and Chairman in 2016.
According to the company, under his leadership, the company undertook strategic investments and acquisitions, and today is responsible for approximately 10 percent of the global container trade. In 2006, DP World acquired the venerable British shipping company P&O for $6.8 billion. The company also made investments, including Imperial Logistics and Syncreon, and recently announced it would be unifying its operations under the DP World brand.
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Bin Sulayem, in his company profile, is reported to have also established Nakheel. The real estate and tourism company in Dubai is known for major projects including The Palm, built on an artificial island, the conversion of the liner Queen Elizabeth 2 into a hotel, and other businesses, including the Dubai Multi Commodities Centre.
The company’s profile says that it contributes more than 36 percent to the GDP of Dubai and about 12 percent to the GDP of the UAE. It operates in more than 80 countries. Last year, it reported nearly $20 billion in revenues.