Bank fraud: Nadia Hussain says received funds from her husband for salons

KARACHI: In a high-profile financial fraud case, Pakistani model and entrepreneur Nadia Hussain has recorded her statement with the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) regarding the alleged involvement of her husband, Atif Khan, in a major banking scam.

According to details, Nadia Hussain appeared before FIA officials on Monday and gave a two-hour-long statement. She clarified that she had no prior knowledge of the source of the funds in question and never inquired about them. “As a married couple, we trusted each other,” she said.

Nadia stated under oath that she was unaware of any fraudulent activities and was not involved in any wrongdoing. She emphasized that she received the funds as a loan from her husband to help establish and run her beauty salon business.

“I declared these funds in my tax returns, and they were used solely for business purposes, including setting up the second and third branches of my salon,” she added.

Giving a timeline of her business ventures, Nadia stated that she launched her brand ‘Nadia Hussain Salon & MediSpa’ in August 2014, with the first branch in Clifton.

Subsequent branches were opened in January 2020 on Rashid Minhas Road and in January 2021 on Tariq Road. She also opened another branch in a mall in Gulshan-e-Iqbal.

She said her husband, Atif Khan, served as CEO of a private bank from 2015 until his resignation in December 2023 and formally parted ways with the institution in June 2024.

She confirmed that the FIA was investigating him following a corporate complaint, and an FIR alleges embezzlement and fraud totaling Rs 539 million.

Read more: FIA summons Nadia Hussain in Rs540 mln fraud case involving husband

During the interrogation, the investigation officer questioned her about credit transactions in her business accounts and the origin of the funds, which she reiterated came from her husband and were used solely for business expenditures.

Nadia Hussain emphasized her longstanding professional background, saying, “I am a dentist and have worked extensively in the media industry for 25 years.”

The FIA has included Nadia Hussain’s statement in the official record as part of the ongoing investigation.