Suhail Bahwan, Omani tycoon and philanthropist, dies at 86

Sheikh Suhail Salim Bahwan, one of Oman's most influential business figures and chairman of the Suhail Bahwan Group (SBG), has died aged 86, the company announced on Sunday.

The Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry also confirmed his death and offered condolences to his family.

Sheikh Suhail, whose fortune was estimated at about $3.7 billion, built much of his wealth through the construction and oil sectors. He co-founded the Suhail and Saud Bahwan Group, which became one of Oman’s most powerful conglomerates.

The Oman Daily Observer noted that he came from a long line of traders in the coastal town of Sur, where his family had been involved in commerce across the Arabian Sea for generations.

He was widely regarded as a pivotal force behind the rise of Oman’s private sector. What began as a small trading business in Muttrah in 1965 grew into a multibillion-dollar enterprise with operations across the Gulf, North Africa, and South Asia.

After the company split in 2002, Sheikh Suhail took a step back from daily management. He later became chairman of the Suhail Bahwan Group while transferring most executive duties to his daughter, Amal bint Suhail Bahwan, in 2016. The group now includes more than 30 companies and employs over 7,000 people.

Even after reducing his corporate role, he remained active in philanthropy through the Suhail Bahwan Charitable Foundation, supporting health, education, and social welfare initiatives in Oman and abroad.

Tributes have poured in from across Oman and the wider region. Harith Al Harthy, CEO of the Muscat Surgery and Urology Centre, described him in a post on X as "a kind-hearted and cheerful man and a self-made leader who built a vast commercial empire", noting his significant contributions to charitable causes, particularly in the health sector.

Omani writer Hamd al-Sawaei called him "a man of achievements, goodness and giving in every inch of Omani soil".

The Grand Mufti of India, Sheikh Abubakr, also mourned him, saying he had been "a symbol of noble humanitarian work" who supported medical treatment for the poor, paid off debts for families in need, and helped fund mosques, schools, and institutes in Oman and in Kerala.