# Asad Jumabhoy

> Asad Jumabhoy is the Singapore-based co-founder and CEO of utu. His career spans tourist tax refunds, payments and rewards, including building Global Blue and serving as vice-chairman of Fintrax/Premier Tax Free, now Planet. He co-founded utu with his son Ameer and represented Singapore in polo, winning a silver medal at the 2007 Southeast Asian Games.

- **Role:** Co-Founder & CEO at utu
- **Organizations:** utu, The Scotts Group, Ascott International, Scotts Holdings, Asia Tax Free Shopping, Global Refund / Global Blue, Fintrax Group / Premier Tax Free (now Planet), King’s Business School Advisory Council, Singapore Polo Club, La Sarita
- **Nationality:** Singaporean
- **Education:** Bachelor of Arts, Occidental College, Master of Science, MIT Sloan School of Management
- **Known for:** Helped build Global Refund/Global Blue into an international tax-refund network., Introduced a private-sector tourist GST refund business in Singapore., Worked on Global Refund’s dynamic currency-conversion business.

## Career timeline

- **1986** — Began his career at the family’s Ascott International.
- **1989-1996** — Led Scotts Weitnauer, the Singapore duty-free and travel-retail joint venture.
- **1996** — Left Scotts Holdings and established Asia Tax Free Shopping.
- **1999** — Asia Tax Free Shopping merged into Global Refund, later Global Blue.
- **2007** — Won a polo silver medal representing Singapore at the Southeast Asian Games.
- **2012** — Exited Global Blue; was named chairman of IDA International.
- **2013** — Acquired a strategic stake in Fintrax/Premier Tax Free and became vice-chairman.
- **2015** — Exited Fintrax in November, after 26 months.
- **2016** — utu launched as a cross-border loyalty and rewards platform, co-founded with Ameer Jumabhoy and Jeremy Tan.
- **2021** — utu entered an Emirates Skywards partnership linking tax-refund value to airline rewards.
- **2023** — utu announced the CardsPal acquisition and a deal with US$33 million in combined transaction value.
- **2025** — utu launched tourist refund vouchers at Dubai’s Gold Souk.
- **2026** — utu announced programmes with Weixin Pay at Milan airports and TimeVallée by Gübelin in Lucerne.

## Achievements

- Helped build Global Refund/Global Blue into an international tax-refund network.
- Introduced a private-sector tourist GST refund business in Singapore.
- Worked on Global Refund’s dynamic currency-conversion business.
- Served as vice-chairman of Fintrax/Premier Tax Free before its 2015 exit.
- Co-founded utu and led its development across cross-border rewards and tourist refund benefits.
- Won a silver medal in polo for Singapore at the 2007 SEA Games.

## Latest updates

- **2026-06** — utu announced its Tourist Privilege programme at TimeVallée by Gübelin’s Lucerne boutique on 15 June.
- **2026-04** — utu announced a Weixin Pay marketing partnership, with a 1 May launch at Milan Malpensa and Milan Linate airports.
- **2026-04** — In an interview, Ilma Afzal credited him as her first business mentor and recalled his backing of her work at utu.
- **2026-04** — The Singapore Polo Club’s annual-meeting minutes record his interest in making polo more inclusive; its 2026/27 committee lists him as polo sub-committee convenor.

## Links

- Website: https://utu.global/
- LinkedIn: https://sg.linkedin.com/in/asad-jumabhoy-5044b95

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/asad-jumabhoy
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-11