Board of Directors

Mr. Sanjay MankaniCo-Founder & Managing Director
Sanjay has more than 30 years experience in business and is the driving force behind Fortes Holdings. Sanjay sets the vision and is involved in the group’s strategic management, business development and finance, and overall growth.
Sanjay guides Fortes with an inspirational yet measured approach that has allowed the group to capitalise on new opportunities, weather the downturns, and develop sustainable business models.
Prior to settling in the UAE, Sanjay spent several 8 years in the investment banking at Lazard Freres & Co., New York, where as a Senior Associate, he advised and transacted on behalf of the firm’s Fortune 500 clients in the fields of Mergers and Acquisitions, Corporate Finance, Leveraged Buy-Outs, and Institutional big-ticket Leasing.
Sanjay chairs Fortes Holdings which is involved in the building, ownership, and management of K-12 schools and nurseries via Fortes Education, Sunmarke School, Regent International School, the Jumeirah International Nurseries, and with further schools coming up; property development via Landbanc; engineering, construction and facility management via Emirates Universal Construction; and the distribution of school supplies via Blue Water Enterprise.
Sanjay holds a double degree from the University of Pennsylvania (USA), with a B.E. in Electrical Engineering and a B.Sc. in Economics (in Finance with Honors) from the Wharton School of Business.

Ajay MankaniCo-Founder & Co-Managing Director
Ajay has more than 25 years experience in business. Ajay is responsible for strategic development of Fortes Holdings; marketing; business development and identification of new development opportunities; human resource development; and all aspects of operational management.
Ajay’s experience includes co-founding Fortes Education and various operating enterprises; co-founding and operating Landbanc, the group’s property development arm; operating Emirates Universal Construction; and overseeing the Fortes’ family office of investments.
Ajay serves on the board of Fortes Holdings which is involved in the building, ownership, and management of K-12 schools and nurseries via Fortes Education, Sunmarke School, Regent International School, and the Jumeirah International Nurseries, and with further schools coming up; property development via Landbanc; engineering, construction and facility management via Emirates Universal Construction; and the distribution of school supplies via Blue Water Enterprise. Ajay graduated with a B.Sc. in Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania in 1991.