Naresh Goyal (born 29 July 1949) is an Indian businessman who is the founder and Chairman of

Jet Airways Jet Airways Limited, trading as Jet Airways, was an Indian full-service airline based in Delhi, with a training and developmental centre in Mumbai. Incorporated in April 1993 as a limited liability company, the airline began operations as an ...

. He started operating Jet Airways in 1993 with initial seed money from Tail Winds incorporated,

Isle of Man The Isle of Man ( , also ), or Mann ( ), is a self-governing British Crown Dependency in the Irish Sea, between Great Britain and Ireland. As head of state, Charles III holds the title Lord of Mann and is represented by a Lieutenant Govern ...

. Following the 2005

IPO An initial public offering (IPO) or stock launch is a public offering in which shares of a company are sold to institutional investors and usually also to retail (individual) investors. An IPO is typically underwritten by one or more investment ...

of Jet Airways, ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...

'' magazine declared him the 16th richest person in

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

, with a net worth of .

Early life

Naresh Goyal was born in

Sangrur Sangrur is a city in the Indian state of Punjab, India. It is the headquarters of Sangrur District. Geography Sangrur is located at . It has an average elevation of 237 metres (778 feet). Climate Health services City has PGIM ...

Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

in 1949 in the house of a jewellery dealer. His father died when he was a child. He studied up to sixth standard at Govt. Raj High School for Boys. When he was eleven years old, his family went through an economic crisis and his house was auctioned. He then lived with his mother's uncle. Goyal holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from Govt. Bikram College of Commerce,

Patiala Patiala () is a city in southeastern Punjab, India, Punjab, northwestern India. It is the fourth largest city in the state and is the administrative capital of Patiala district. Patiala is located around the ''Qila Mubarak, Patiala, Qila Mubar ...

Career

In 1967, Goyal began his career as a cashier in his maternal uncle Seth Charan Das Ram Lal's travel agency, East West Agencies, at a starting salary of Rs 300 a month. After graduating in Commerce, Goyal joined the travel business with the GSA for Lebanese International Airlines. From 1967 to 1974, he underwent extensive training in the travel business through his association with several foreign airlines. He travelled overseas extensively on business during this period. In 1969, he was appointed the public relations manager of Iraqi Airways and from 1971 to 1974 was the regional manager for ALIA,

Royal Jordanian Airlines Royal Jordanian Airlines (formerly known as Alia Royal Jordanian Airlines) is the flag carrier of Jordan with its head office in the capital, Amman. The airline operates scheduled international services over four continents from its main base at ...

. He also worked with the Indian offices of

Middle East Airlines Middle East Airlines – Air Liban S.A.L. (), more commonly known as Middle East Airlines (MEA) (), is the flag carrier of Lebanon, with its head office in Beirut, near Beirut–Rafic Hariri International Airport. It operates scheduled internat ...

(MEA), where he gained experience in various areas including ticketing, reservations and sales. in 1974, with £500 from his mother, he set up his own agency named Jetair, representing the likes of

Air France Air France (; legally ''Société Air France, S.A.''), stylised as AIRFRANCE, is the flag carrier of France, and is headquartered in Tremblay-en-France. The airline is a subsidiary of the Air France-KLM Group and is one of the founding members ...

Austrian Airlines Austrian Airlines AG, often shortened to Austrian or AUA, is the flag carrier of Austria and a subsidiary of Lufthansa, the flag carrier of Germany. The airline is headquartered on the grounds of Vienna International Airport in Schwechat where i ...

and

Cathay Pacific Cathay Pacific Airways Limited, or simply Cathay Pacific, is the flag carrier of Hong Kong, with its head office and main airline hub, hub located at Hong Kong International Airport. The airline's operations and its subsidiaries have schedule ...

. In 1975, he was appointed regional manager of Philippines Airlines in India. Naresh Goyal stepped down from the Board of

along with his wife Anita Goyal on 25 March 2019 amid a financial crisis in the airline and after two-thirds of the fleet grounded. He was stopped from flying away in 2019.

Money laundering

In September 2019, the

Enforcement Directorate The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is a law enforcement and economic intelligence agency of the Government of India. Established on 1 May 1956, it is responsible for enforcing economic laws and combating financial crimes. The ED operates under th ...

questioned Goyal for investigating charges of foreign exchange violation against him. He was detained and questioned for money laundering by the ED in 2020.

September 2023 arrest

Goyal was arrested by the ED in September 2023 after questioning him for 8 to 10 hours. An FIR had been filed against Goyal based on a complaint by

Canara Bank Canara Bank is an Indian public sector bank based in Bangalore, India. Established in 1906 at Mangalore by Ammembal Subba Rao Pai. The bank was nationalized in 1969. Canara Bank also has offices in London, Dubai and New York. History Amm ...

Jet Airways

In 1993, Goyal took advantage of the opening of the Indian economy by the Congress government led by P. V. Narasimha Rao, the then

Prime Minister of India The prime minister of India (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the head of government of the Republic of India. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and his chosen Union Council of Ministers, Council of Ministers, despite the president of ...

and the enunciation of the Open Skies Policy by the

Government of India The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of States and union t ...

to set up Jet Airways for the operation of scheduled air services on domestic sectors in India. Jet Airways commenced commercial operations on 5 May 1993. Goyal founded Jet Airways (Private) Limited with the objective of providing sales and marketing representation to foreign airlines in India. Goyal served on the board of the

International Air Transport Association The International Air Transport Association (IATA ) is an airline trade association founded in 1945. IATA has been described as a cartel since, in addition to setting technical standards for airlines, IATA also organized tariff conferences tha ...

(IATA) from 2004–2006. He was re-elected in 2010 with his tenure extending until June 2016. Naresh Goyal stepped down from the Board of Jet Airways on 25 March 2019 along with his wife.

Personal life

Goyal met his wife, Anita, after she joined the company in 1979 as a marketing analyst and rose to become the head of marketing and sales. They married nine years later. The couple together have a daughter and a son.

Awards

References

External links

Naresh Goyal image

Jet Airways site Chairman's profile

Takeover link
{{DEFAULTSORT:Goyal, Naresh Indian company founders Indian billionaires 1949 births Living people Airline founders Jet Airways people Businesspeople from Mumbai Indian aviation businesspeople 20th-century Indian businesspeople Businesspeople from Punjab, India People from Sangrur