Our Directors

Director - International Tax Service & Transfer Pricing

Alessandro Valente

Alessandro is leading the International and Transfer Pricing arm at Crowe UAE. An experienced Tax adviser in the field of Direct Tax, he specializes in double tax agreements, international disputes and cross-border structuring. He holds LLM, LLB, BBA and BA degrees from five international universities, as well as an LPC, and is a member of the National Association of Italian Tax Advisers (ANTI). Alessandro is a member of the Tax Technology Committee and of the New Tax Professionals Committee at the CFE Tax Advisers Europe – the leading European Tax confederation associated with more than 800,000 tax advisers in Africa-Oceania via the Global Tax Advisers Platform (GTAP). Alessandro is a frequent speaker at seminars, webinars and conferences on various key topics pertaining to Direct Tax. Alessandro is author to over 20 publications on prestigious national and international newspapers, magazines and books.

Director – Financial Services

Alok Aggarwal

Leads Financial Services covering various service lines across the banking, insurance and investment space – enabling clients resolve challenges, improve performance and deliver growth. This spans practice development, relationships, delivery and people. Service areas include Risk, Governance, Compliance, Internal Audit and Business Advisory viz. Performance Improvement, Strategy, Turnaround, Others.
He has rich global C-suite experience in Banking, Financial Services and Consulting.
He is CIA-Certified Internal Auditor and CRMA-Certification in Risk Management Assurance, from Institute of Internal Auditors, USA, CFE-Certified Fraud Examiner from ACFE,USA, CAMS-Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist and CGSS–Certified Global Sanctions Specialist from ACAMS,USA and ACSI – Associate of The Chartered Institute for Securities and Investment, UK.

Head of Cyber Information Services and Director – Risk Consulting

David Cafferty

David Cafferty is a business professional with over 30 years of experience in a variety of roles, including management and consulting in forensic accounting, financial crime, corporate governance, regulatory compliance and anti-money laundering for both private and public sector organisations locally, in the MENA Region and internationally.
His career has included working for a Big-4 Firm, an international law firm, and the third largest police economic crime unit in the UK while his industry experience includes financial services, logistics, local and central government, hospitality, healthcare, construction and oil & gas.”

Director - Global Mobility & Consulting

Deepika Chandak

Deepika Chandak is leading the Global Mobility & Consulting arm of Crowe UAE. With over 10 years of experience in Global Mobility, she has supported various MNCs with local compliance and advisory projects. This includes seamless coordination with multi-jurisdictional projects. Her role further extends to managing corporate and accounting advisory services alongside a team with decades of experience. Prior to joining Crowe, she worked at one of the Big-4 consulting firms in India. She is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India and holds a degree in the field of Commerce.

Director – Tax Advisory

Michel Ruitenberg

Michel is an experienced tax advisor in the field of indirect taxation based in Dubai, UAE. He holds an LLM in Tax Law of the VU University Amsterdam and is a member of the Dutch association of Tax Advisors. Before working in the UAE, Michel has worked as tax advisor for one of the big-4 firms in the Netherlands, for a large FMCG company and for the Crowe Member firm in the Netherlands. Michel has gained experience on due diligence projects, implementation projects, compliance projects and a wide range of advisory projects with regards to taxes.

Director – Finance & Accounting

Mridula Bihani

Mridula is leading the Finance & Accounting practice of Crowe UAE. She boasts a distinguished career spanning over 16 years, punctuated with roles in top-tier industrial settings and a significant tenure managing her own private practice. A maestro in finance, her competencies encompass areas such as financial forecasting, capital budgeting, risk management, and financial data analysis. Adept in the nuances of Cost, management and financial accounting, she has consistently showcased prowess in areas like cost modelling, product costing, cash flow management, financial modelling, asset management, and advanced financial reporting as per the Standard. With an intrinsic understanding of corporate finance & tax strategies, she brings a holistic approach to financial decision-making. Pairing these with her expertise in Team Management, R2R processes, and Corporate Compliances, she stands poised to navigate the finance and accounts team towards unparalleled horizons of success and innovation.

She is a qualified Chartered Accountant and a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India and holds a degree in the field of Commerce

Director – Fraud & Forensic Services

Nadeem Maniar

Nadeem Maniar has accomplished his Post-Graduation in Management (Finance) & is a Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist (CAMS) & is currently applying his expertise as a Director for Risk Consulting Services at Crowe. His 8+ years of experience in the fields of Anti-Money Laundering (AML) & Combating the Financing of Terrorism (CFT), Fraud Risk Consulting & Advisory and his proven ability in implementing & advising clients has helped them to successfully immunize their financial systems.
Nadeem’s deep insight in arenas of know your employee, forensic investigations, third party risk consulting and due diligence is an added advantage & has empowered numerous organizations in identifying and unearthing frauds which may have led to huge financial and reputational loss. His proficiency in information security systems led him to spearhead & achieve ISO 27001 Certification in one of his earlier stints with an organization. Having a penchant for innovation & technology, Nadeem has assisted the Crowe team by incubating various tools to automate & enhance the service delivery to clients especially in risk consulting practice.

Director – Senior Consultant & Trainer – Governance

Pijush Das

A Senior Banker with strong business development and Communication skills ; a capacity for strategic thinking; significant experience in Treasury, Risk and Compliance, gained in domestic and international markets; a strong advocate of customer focus and creation of shareholder value; Inspirational and Visionary, an Innovative and Integrative thinker with the strong belief that winning businesses are the natural outcome of entrepreneurial and technological foresight.

We are focused on delivering a high-quality

Director- Governance, Risk & Compliance

Rajeev Nanda

Rajeev Nanda has played a pivotal role in many financial institutions and audit firms in areas of internal audit, external audit, compliance, Accounting and Treasury operations for over three decades. He has worked in a big 4 audit firm, a bank, an investment banking firm and an Assets Management firm. He has a deep understanding of compliance, risk and of governance structures and possesses exceptional verbal, written and inter personnel communication skills. He is a fellow member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India and holds a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in Commerce and Accounting.

Director- Corporate and International Tax

Rakesh Nair

Rakesh Nair is leading the Corporate Tax arm of Crowe UAE. Rakesh has more than 10 years of experience in corporate tax, international tax and transaction tax matters catering a number of industry verticals. He has extensive experience on tax advisories and tax litigation. He has assisted several multinational companies in establishing a tax efficient business presence and in implementing tax efficient cash repatriation techniques. Prior to joining Crowe, he has worked with one of the Big-4 consulting firms in India. He is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India and holds a degree in the field of Commerce.

Director- Innovation and Transformation

Rakesh Kumar Dhoot

Rakesh proficiency lies in Developing transformational roadmaps for organizational change, ensuring seamless transitions toward innovation-driven objectives, Innovation Strategic, Digital Transformation, Designing and implementing novel business models, leveraging IT-driven process automation, orchestrating efficient ERP implementations, Offering insightful management consulting and Risk Management. His contributions extend to collaborating with prestigious corporate entities, delivering tailored insights that fuel growth and operational excellence. He is a qualified Chartered Accountant and a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India with more than 15 years of experience. Prior to joining Crowe his extensive background includes pivotal roles within Big 4 and renowned consulting firms in India, where he has consistently delivered exceptional results for a diverse clientele across industries and international borders.