Qais Zaharia

Nomad Investment Partnership

Finance & Investing1995-2014

2 principles 0 frameworks 1 stories 1 quotes

Ask what Qais would do about your problem

Core Principles

resilience

Opportunity often appears after a loss or perceived loss; stay alert and prepared to act when it does.

Qais Zaharia was laid off from his job in Hong Kong when his boss was fired. Desperate, he took a sell-side analyst role at Deutsche Bank that he initially hated. This led directly to meeting Nick Sleep and founding Nomad, one of history's greatest investment partnerships.

strategy

Make money on things you deeply understand, and avoid things you don't fully comprehend, regardless of their apparent opportunity.

Qais Zaharia's father made his fortune in machinery export but lost it speculating in stocks he didn't understand using leverage. This lesson shaped Nomad's philosophy: they only invested in businesses they had thoroughly researched and understood deeply.

“My father had made his money on things he understood and lost them on things he didn't understand.”

Stories

Qais Zaharia's father built a successful machinery export business but lost it all speculating in stocks he didn't understand using borrowed money. The failure became formative: Qais learned to only invest in things he comprehends deeply. This principle became core to Nomad's strategy.

Lesson: Make money on things you understand deeply; avoid things you don't understand, regardless of opportunity or leverage available.