(September 24, 2009, Philadelphia, PA) – Ajay Raju, the managing partner of the Philadelphia office of Reed Smith LLP and Vice Chair of its firmwide Business & Finance Department, has been selected by the Philadelphia Business Journal as a winner of its inaugural Minority Business Leaders Award.
Mr. Raju’s national and international practice has a strong emphasis in structured finance and real estate capital markets transactions, including representation of commercial mortgage lenders in structured finance transactions. A 1996 graduate of Temple University School of Law, he is one of this nation’s leading experts on conducting business in India.
Mr. Raju is Chair and CEO of the Global Indian Chamber of Commerce, a nonprofit organization serving more than 20,000 members worldwide, which he founded in 1999. He is also a member of the Board of Trustees of Lincoln University, a Historically Black University, and a founding board member of I-LEAD, a Philadelphia community-based college degree program.
Among the recent achievements for which Mr. Raju was recognized by the PBJ was his leading role in bringing the “Rhythms of India: The Art of Nandalal Bose” to the East Coast in June 2008. When the Philadelphia Museum of Art recognized it was some $300,000 short of being able to sponsor this exhibit, the organization turned to Mr. Raju for assistance. He not only secured significant contributions from Reed Smith and its legacy client Bank of New York Mellon to spearhead this effort, but continued fundraising until the full amount was raised, making it possible for the people of Philadelphia and the Eastern Seaboard to enjoy one of India’s greatest cultural treasures and the first major exhibition loaned by India to the U.S. in more than a decade.
In June, Mr. Raju was selected as one of the Philadelphia Legal Intelligencer’s "Diversity Attorney of the Year" for 2009 by and the PA Law Weekly.
Mr. Raju and the other top-level corporate executives and advocates of ethnic backgrounds selected as Top Minority Business Leaders were honored by the PBJ in ceremonies this morning at Lowes Philadelphia Hotel, Philadelphia.
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