Aziz Hashim

Aziz Hashim is one of the world’s leading experts on franchising and a highly regarded executive in the U.S. and international franchise space. He is the Founder and Managing Partner of NRD Capital (NRD), the first business fund both sponsored and managed by a former multi-unit franchisee. He also serves as Chairman of the Board of Directors for the International Franchise Association (IFA), representing the franchise industry and its $1.3 trillion in annual economic output. Mr. Hashim’s franchise portfolio began with one QSR location and he has since grown it to become one of the top 200 franchise operators in the country, representing a number of high-profile brands, including Popeye’s®, KFC®, Taco Bell®, Dominos Pizza® and many others. NRD Capital, founded in 2014, now occupies a unique niche in franchise equity investments. Based in Atlanta, NRD Capital is focused on supporting the growth of high quality franchise brands by positioning them for accelerated success, and its portfoportfolio now includes successful QSR concepts like Fuzzy’s Taco Shop and the iconic American brand Frisch’s Big Boy, acquired by NRD in 2015 through an investor group made up of greater than 80 percent multi-unit franchisees. NRD Capital now boasts more than 75 years of collective operational and financial experience with top global brands like Burger King and Snap Fitness as well as regional brands like Moe’s Southwest Grill, Pet Valu, Super Wash. Mr. Hashim was named by Nation’s Restaurant News as one of the 50 most powerful people leading and shaping change in the restaurant industry, and he serves on the Board of Advisors at the J. Mack Robinson College of Business at Georgia State University, the BB&T Bank Regional Advisory Board. He also served as past Chairman of the 2014 Multi-Unit Franchise Conference. Deeply involved in community service and frequently contributing to the industry’s growth, Mr. Hashim regularly shares his knowledge and experience at major business and franchise conferences. In 2014, Mr. Hashim and his wife endowed a faculty position at the Cecil B. Day School of Hospitality at Georgia State University for the Study of Franchise Entrepreneurship. Mr. Hashim attended the University of California at Irvine, graduating with honors from its prestigious electrical engineering program.