Your Columbians
Imran Anwar

"There are three steps from fantasy to reality: desire, decision, determination."

Imran Anwar (1962– )
Innovator
Business 1990

Imran Anwar raised a ruckus in 1989 at Columbia Business School, exhorting the MIS department to give e-mail to business-school students because the Internet would revolutionize business. He was mocked for making geeky demands and was refused. He even paid out of his own pocket to have Columbia offer him e-mail. In 1990, working single-handedly and starting with just one computer, he went on to establish the top-level Internet domain for his native Pakistan (.PK), which is still privately controlled. He established the first Internet Service Provider in that whole region. Pakistan today has cheaper internet services than even U.S. residents enjoy. He then established one of the world's first daily online newspapers (PakistaNews) and was founder of Pakistan News Service, one of the most respected online national newswires. He brought every major Pakistani newspaper online with free content for readers worldwide, years before major U.S. newspapers set up Web sites. Not content with his being acknowledged as father of the Internet in Pakistan, Imran went on to revolutionize financial services in Pakistan. Despite Pakistan being deemed a sovereign risk at that time, he convinced MasterCard to issue its first credit-card license to a Pakistani bank, leading this to be one of the few markets MasterCard has a huge lead over other card brands. To jump start the market and to help improve the lot of Pakistan's underprivileged 140 million people, Imran also worked hard, at his own cost and effort, to establish the first national credit bureau in Pakistan. Today Pakistan enjoys a much higher standard of living, thanks to the availability of credit to purchase durable goods, which most families could not previously afford. An avid boater and aviator, Imran is now working on the establishment of aircraft and aviation manufacturing facilities, to help improve Pakistan's future in aerospace, but also to help American aircraft manufacturers facing low-cost foreign competitors, and hard-to-find aircraft assembly technicians, compete and thrive and help bring the U.S. general aviation industry back into good health. Additionally, Imran (who also attended CU Journalism) is a published writer, and well-known TV and radio personality, often seen on CNN, Fox News Channel, and various other media outlets.

Submitted by Usman Anwar who is solely responsible for the content.

Your Turn
Columbians list their favorites.
Write Columbia's History
Columbia's history, as seen by those who have studied, taught, and worked here.
Ahead of Their Time
From Alexander Hamilton to Eric Kandel, Columbians have changed the world and how we see it.
C250 Celebrates | C250 Perspectives | C250 Forum | C250 Events | C250 To Go |
Contact C250 | Privacy Policy | About This Web Site | © Copyright 2004 Columbia University