Cyrus_A._Ansary
Cyrus A. Ansary
American lawyer and philanthropist
Cyrus A. Ansary (born 1934)[1] is an American lawyer and philanthropist.
Cyrus A. Ansary is a lawyer, financier, educator, philanthropist and author. He earned a BS in Economics from American University, a law degree from Columbia University, and a Certificate in French Civilization from the University of Paris. He served in the U.S. Marine Corps and now lives with his wife, Jan, in the Washington, D.C., area. They are the parents of four children.
Mr. Ansary was Chairman of the Board of JP Morgan Value Opportunities Fund, Inc. He was the lead director and then chairman of Washington Mutual Investors Fund for a total of 27 years. He also served on the boards of First American Bank of Maryland, Krupp GmbH, and Deutsche Babcock. He is the founder and chairman emeritus of Fort Knox National Company. He managed the first sovereign wealth fund in the world to make transnational equity investments.
Mr. Ansary has been actively engaged in civic endeavors throughout his career. He served on the Board of Trustees of American University in Washington, D.C., for almost 28 years, including the last nine as Chairman of the Board, and is now Chairman Emeritus. He was a member of the board of trustees of the Krupp Foundation in Essen, Germany. He was also an adjunct professor of corporate finance at American University. Since 1990, the Cyrus A. Ansary Medal has been awarded annually to a civic or corporate leader selected by the American University Board of Trustees.
Mr. Ansary has served as a member of the Woodrow Wilson Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C., a trustee of the Washington Opera Society, and a director of the Wolf Trap Foundation in Vienna, Virginia. He was a member of the Life Guard Society of George Washington’s Mount Vernon, and is now an emeritus member.
Mr. Ansary has been listed in Who’s Who in America and also Who’s Who in the World for several decades.
Mr. Ansary has been a long-term student and admirer of President George Washington and in early 2019 published George Washington: Dealmaker-In-Chief. His extensive and carefully researched book on George Washington tells the story of how the Father of Our Country unleashed the entrepreneurial spirit in America. Mr. Ansary is also the author of the memoir Odyssey of High Hopes, published in 2023.