About
ZARIAN was founded in 2020 by 3 entrepreneurs with highly diverse backgrounds and deep expertise across industries:
INDUSTRIES
Aviation
Education
Financial Services
Food & Beverage
Insurance
Outsourced Services
Real Estate
Software Development
Retail
Transportation & Logistics
Areas of Expertise
Business Development
Capital Raising
Due Diligence
Management
Market Entry
Mergers & Acquisitions
Negotiations
Partnerships
Process Optimization
Sales & Marketing
INVESTMENT STRATEGY
European enterprises that aspire to gain a strong foothold in the US market.
US enterprises interested in entering the EU market and/or setting up production/operations in Eastern Europe in order to benefit from the exceptional technical talent, lower labor and utility costs, favorable tax treatment.
Sector agnostic investments through equity and quasi-equity instruments.
Focus on established enterprises with growth and consolidation potential, high-potential start-ups, real estate projects with a clear path to monetization, and special situations (e.g., distressed assets).
Preference for minority positions in enterprises with strong management teams. Capacity to take majority positions alongside a strong operating partner.
Typical ticket size of up to USD $3m with capacity for larger transactions.
Preference for investments to be structured as capital increases. Readiness to engage in share purchases in specific situations.
Hands-on involvement in facilitating business development initiatives aimed at forging stronger ties between the US and EU markets.
Entrepreneur-friendly approach and deep investment and industry expertise.
Advisory committees offering dedicated guidance on various strategic, operational, and financial aspects.
Active leverage of the partners’ extensive networks, A-MAX’s resources and infrastructure, and seamless exchange of institutionalized know-how and market insights.
Assistance with debt and equity capital raising, M&A mandates, and joint-venture/partnership initiatives.
Maximizing exit valuations through leveraging a strong track record in operating and investing across a wide array of industries.
Extensive experience with management of all aspects of M&A and capital raising processes across different industries and phases of development.
Preference for exiting investments within 3 to 5 years.
Investment Process
0-6 weeks
Company screening
Proactive screening and review of referrals
Initial meetings and discussions with potential portfolio companies
Information gathering & Analysis
Accumulation of information related to addressable market, competitors, customers, business model, traction and growth potential, as well as management team capacity
Financial modeling and valuation
4-12 weeks
Initial due diligence
Performance of initial due diligence
Submission of initial term sheet and initial negotiation of deal structuring
Investment decision
Presentation of the investment opportunity to ZARIAN’s Investment Committee
Submission of final term sheet and draft deal documentation
Deal structuring & Closing
Structure optimization from legal, tax, operations and financing perspective
Final negotiations of deal documentation and deal closing
3-5 years
Business development & Scaling up
Active business development support through providing access to markets, capital, and talent
Performance monitoring
Exit preparations
Exit process
Active involvement in the exit process aimed at maximizing outcome for all shareholders
Exit from the investment
TRANSACTIONS
Team
Management
Imran Alimohammed
Partner
15+ years of partnership development, scaling, and enterprise growth for organizations in the public, private, and non-profit sectors.
13+ years of experience in aviation, transportation, and logistics, including launching and serving as CEO for Aviation Services East Africa.
5+ years of leadership consulting experience. Consulted and led leadership workshops across all sectors and across four continents.
Investor in real estate and retail projects, including the Hair Cuttery, Local NYC, Hotel Shocard.
Co-founded Global Encounters: A global youth leadership program for high school students with 1,300+ alumni across 30 countries.
Harvard University: MPA Degree (2011).
University of Southern California: BA Degree, Social Sciences (2004).
Adjunct Lecturer in Leadership for Aga Khan University.
Class President at Harvard Kennedy School.
Graduation speaker at Harvard University.
Fluency in English, Urdu, and Hindi.
Zarek Meherally
Partner
4+ years of business development experience as a Director at A-MAX.
Investor in numerous technology start-ups, real estate, financial services, and various other industries.
Previously served as Logistics Director at Global Encounters, a global youth leadership program for high school students with 1,300+ alumni across 30 countries.
Indiana University Bloomington, Kelley School of Business: BS Degree, Economics (2016).
Stanford University: Computer Science Certification.
Fluency in English, Urdu, and Hindi.
Angel Kelchev
Partner
15+ years of M&A and business development experience both in the United States (OYO, Union Square Advisors, Lehman Brothers, Morgan Stanley) and in Bulgaria (Centroida.ai, ASK Equity, Endeavor, Ernst & Young, Entrea Capital).
Took over Centroida.ai in 2017 and served as CEO until the company’s sale to ScaleFocus in May 2019. In 2018, Centroida.ai grew its y-o-y revenue 10x and was selected as Tech Startup of the Year in Bulgaria.
Previously advised US companies from the software, internet, consumer electronics, home entertainment, hospitality and semiconductor sectors (sell-side M&A advisory, buy-side M&A advisory, capital raising, etc.).
Previously advised Bulgarian companies from the software, industrial manufacturing, FMCG, personal finance, traditional and online retail, agriculture, and other sectors (sell-side M&A advisory, buy-side M&A advisory, equity and debt capital raising, Board advisory, etc.).
Harvard University: MPA Degree (2011).
Stanford University: BA Degree, Economics (2006).
Harvard Business School: SVMP (2005).
London School of Economics: two corporate finance courses (2005).
Bellevue College: AAS Degree, Business Administration, Honors (2004).
Fluency in English and Bulgarian (native).
ADVISOR
IRSHAD MEHERALLY
President & CEO, A-MAX
19+ years of experience in the property and casualty insurance industry as President & CEO of A-MAX.
Current areas of responsibility at A-MAX include HR, Marketing, Legal and IT.
Extensive experience in mergers and acquisitions and investments in the insurance, real estate and technology industries.
Previously served as Director of Human Resources at Telecom Technologies, Inc. where he played a key role in driving significant growth and scaling the company to 250+ employees before it was acquired by a public company.
Solid background in investing in startup companies across sectors and supporting them to advance their business development, sales, marketing and administrative capacity.
M.S. in Manufacturing Systems Engineering, New Jersey Institute of Technology.
B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, NED University of Engineering and Technology.