Qasim Abbas is the Head of Tactical Opportunities International at Blackstone. Mr. Abbas leads the group’s European and Asian investment strategy, with a particular focus on financial services, and is a member of the Tactical Opportunities Investment Committee. Mr. Abbas has been responsible for leading the group’s investments in Currencies Direct, Group Premium, Hipgnosis, Ki Insurance, Prima, NIBC, Rothesay Life, The Northview Group, various performing mortgage pool acquisitions, reinsurance side cars and joint ventures, as well as the establishment of de novo lending platforms such as Pluto Finance.

Before joining Blackstone in 2012, Mr. Abbas was a Portfolio Manager with Trafalgar Asset Managers (a European credit-focused hedge fund), where he invested and traded in European Asset-Backed and Mortgage-Backed Securities across a range of asset classes. Prior to that, he was responsible for establishing a Europe-focused mortgage loan portfolio trading and investment desk at UBS AG in London, and previously spent eight years at Citigroup in emerging markets, securitization, and asset-backed special situations roles.

Mr. Abbas received a BA in Economics and Government from Clark University. He currently serves as a director of Currencies Direct, NIBC, and Hipgnosis, and was formerly a director of Rothesay Life, the Northview Group, and Lombard International.