Moisés Khafif Z"L

The life of Moisés Khafif Z"L was an example of resilience in overcoming the circumstances he faced; with effort and tenacity, he achieved every goal he set for himself.

He was born in Aleppo, Syria on August 13, 1931. His parents were Isaac Khafif and Ivette Mazal Sued, and his brothers were Menahem, Edmond and Jacques. They lived in a five-story building shared with the rest of the Khafif family. There, on the first floor, Moisés' family had a 5,400-sq-ft apartment that served as the gathering point for family meetings and celebrations.

In his childhood in Aleppo, he attended the Alliance Française school in the mornings and the Sephardic synagogue school (known as ketab) in the afternoons, until 1947. At 16, he and his family had to emigrate in search of a peaceful and safe environment. In that search, they spent two weeks in Beirut and then traveled to Tehran, where they stayed for more than a year and where Moisés continued his education at the local synagogue's school. They lived in a building on Shavareza street.

Moisés then traveled with his brother Menahem to Geneva, Switzerland, where he completed his secondary studies under the care and sponsorship of Elie Safra, later traveling to London where he pursued his university studies at the London School of Economics. He graduated in 1954 at age 23 as an Actuary —a career today better known as Accountant— funding his studies through his own efforts. It was in London that he met Edmond Safra; on one of his trips they agreed that Moisés would begin working for Grupo Safra in São Paulo.

In 1954 he moved to Brazil at age 23, where he lived until 1962. During the first two years he lived with his brother Menahem in an apartment on Avenida São João. There, Moisés began his professional career, becoming —thanks to his professional skill— the regional representative for Trade Development Bank and Republic National Bank of New York; he held that role for around 30 years alongside Edmond Safra.

In June 1956, his mother and his other two brothers, Edmond and Jacques, arrived in Brazil and they all moved together to a residence on Avenida Angélica. In early 1957, his father Isaac Khafif also arrived in Brazil; he passed away just months later, in August 1957.

In 1962, on one of his trips to Buenos Aires, he met Gloria Btesh, who was his wife and lifelong partner. Together they raised four children: Ivette, Isaac, Edgard and Elena, ten grandchildren and several great-grandchildren. The love and admiration of his family was always his anchor; their wellbeing, one of his greatest aspirations and accomplishments.

In 1969 he settled definitively in Argentina as representative of Trade Development Bank and Republic National Bank of New York, with offices on Florida 890 until 1978. Beginning the following year, he started exploring the real estate market. After several successful ventures, in 1982 he acquired the company Red Argentina de Grandes Hoteles S.A. from Intercontinental Hotel Group USA, with a plot of land at the corner of Arenales and Maipú streets that would later become the iconic Plaza San Martín building —also known as the American Express building— thus beginning the history of the company he founded: RAGHSA S.A. Throughout its trajectory, RAGHSA became one of the most important development and commercialization companies in the corporate office market and the high-end residential real estate market in Buenos Aires and Uruguay.

Always at the forefront of new challenges, Moisés built the first build-to-suit corporate building for American Express and created the Le Parc brand for high-end residential towers, with a style of understated elegance, maximum quality, and concepts unseen until then in Buenos Aires. Le Parc Residencial Tower was, for many years, the tallest residential building in South America and the first in Argentina to feature exclusive amenities and services for its residents.

His entrepreneurial spirit also led him to other markets, with ventures in Punta del Este, Uruguay, and in the North American market.

The pillars of his life can be summed up in three words: honesty, work, and long-term planning. His business strategies were precise; his market knowledge enabled him to make sound decisions, evaluating probabilities and pushing himself to meet his goals.

His compassion and his commitment to his religion and traditions led him to become a great benefactor of the community, always present with constant economic and spiritual support, becoming a pillar for those who needed him most.

Today we remember him for who he was: a man of integrity, hardworking, generous, an excellent husband and an even better father; and above all, a great human being. His absence is very difficult to fill, but those of us who continue his legacy invoke him, and his example guides us along the path he traced.