Powerful Dubai businessman Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem is stepping down as chairman and CEO of logistics giant DP World after his crude, sexually explicit emails with late financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein surfaced.
DP World, a $13.5 billion conglomerate that operates dozens of ports and terminals worldwide, confirmed the change in leadership — naming Essa Kazim as chair of the board and elevating longtime executive Yuvraj Narayan to chief executive, the Financial Times reported.
A statement from Dubai authorities announcing the appointments did not reference bin Sulayem directly.
But the massive trove of Epstein files recently released by the US Department of Justice shed light on his relationship with Epstein, including email exchanges that referenced sexual encounters and other personal matters.
In September 2015, Sulayem bragged to Epstein in an email about bedding a foreign exchange student who was living in Dubai, writing: “She got engaged but now she back with me … The best sex I ever had amazing body.”
The correspondence, which continued years after Epstein’s 2008 conviction for soliciting sex from a minor, also included crude sexual references and nude images.
While Sulayem has not been accused of a crime, major international partners signaled they would halt new business with DP World pending action from the company.
La Caisse, Canada’s second-largest pension fund — which has committed more than $5 billion alongside DP World over the past decade — announced it would suspend additional capital allocations.
In a statement, the fund stressed the need to separate the company from Sulayem and said it expected DP World to clarify the situation and respond appropriately.
British International Investment, which partners with DP World on port projects in Africa, issued a similar message, stating it would refrain from new investments until the company had taken what it described as necessary corrective steps.
DP World said Friday the leadership changes “support its strategy for sustainable growth and reinforce its role in strengthening global supply chains and supporting Dubai’s position as a leading hub for trade and logistics.”
Nasdaq Dubai, where DP World maintains listed bonds, said Sulayem’s resignation was “effective immediately.”
The latest batch of Epstein documents have proven embarrassing for top business and political figures who maintained ties with the creep even after his 2008 guilty plea.
Kathryn Ruemmler said Thursday she would step down as chief legal officer at Goldman Sachs after newly disclosed emails showed she maintained a close personal relationship with Epstein, referring to him as “Uncle Jeffrey” and likening him to an “older brother.”
Former US Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers exited a number of high-profile gigs after Epstein files showed him exchanging personal messages, including requests for romantic advice and comments widely criticized as sexist, with the late financier.
Summers said he was “deeply ashamed” of the relationship.
