Top Canadian Fund Suspends DP World Investment Over CEO's Relation to Epstein

Canada’s second-largest pension fund has suspended future investments alongside Dubai-based DP World after newly released US Justice Department files detailed communications between the company’s chief executive, Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, and Jeffrey Epstein.

The decision by La Caisse underscores how disclosures tied to the late financier continue to reverberate through global corporate and infrastructure networks.

Governance Risk Threshold

La Caisse said on Tuesday it would not pursue further investments with DP World until the company clarified the nature of bin Sulayem’s links to Epstein and took “necessary actions.”

A spokesperson stressed, “To be clear, we are not invested in DP World. It is a partner of ours in port projects around the world, but we are not shareholders of the parent company.”

The spokesperson added that it was “important to distinguish the company, DP World, from the individual, Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, who is the focus of the current situation.”

The fund manages 473.3 billion Canadian dollars, or about $350bn, in assets as of December 2024. It has invested heavily in DP World-linked assets, including a $2.5bn commitment in 2022 to Jebel Ali Port, the Jebel Ali Free Zone, and the National Industries Park in the United Arab Emirates.

In Canada, DP World operates terminals in Vancouver, Fraser Surrey, Nanaimo, Prince Rupert, and Saint John, and in September announced plans for a new container terminal at the Port of Montreal.

Files, Names, and Disclosures

The move follows the release last week of millions of U.S. Justice Department files that included years of correspondence between bin Sulayem and Epstein. According to the disclosures, the exchanges covered personal matters, including discussions of relationships with women and travel to Epstein’s residence.

Private correspondence showed bin Sulayem engaging Epstein in a discussion of Quranic exegesis shortly before describing a planned sexual encounter with a Russian woman aboard his yacht.

On Tuesday, Democratic Representative Ro Khanna told the US House of Representatives that bin Sulayem was among six previously redacted names in the so-called Epstein files.

Khanna did not allege specific criminality, and inclusion in the files does not in itself suggest wrongdoing.

He also named billionaire Les Wexner and four other men whose identities have not been confirmed. Wexner has denied knowledge of Epstein’s crimes and said the financier stole from him.

Looking at the Kiswa

Another picture was released by the Justice Department, showing Jeffrey Epstein and Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem seemingly examining the Kiswa, the sacred cloth that covers the Kaaba in Mecca. The cloth was sent in 2017 by UAE-based Aziza al-Ahmadi and a Saudi contact who had already been convicted of a sex offense. The materials suggest Epstein may have used the kiswa as floor coverings or walked on them.

On February 3, Kentucky Representative Thomas Massie said newly released files identify Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem as the recipient of a 2009 email from Epstein referencing a “torture video.”

The name had initially been redacted, but Department of Justice records list “Sultan Bin Sulayem” in an unredacted file. The nature of the video is unknown.

Infrastructure Stakes & Reputational Spillover

DP World operates more than 60 ports and terminals worldwide and counts La Caisse as a major investment partner through DP World in Canada.

The suspension does not unwind existing projects but places new joint ventures on hold pending clarification. DP World and bin Sulayem did not immediately respond to Al Jazeera’s requests for comment.

Epstein died in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges while his former associate, Ghislaine Maxwell, is serving a 20-year sentence. But no charges have been brought against bin Sulayem in connection with the files.

For La Caisse, the episode tests governance screens applied to global infrastructure partnerships spanning North America and the Gulf.