Dinesh Sastry, J.D.
President, Illuminant Capital Holdings, LLC | Vice Chairman, Simba Fiber | Former Trustee Democratic Party
Dinesh Sastry is an accomplished international investment strategist, political advisor, and
technology entrepreneur with more than two decades of cross-sector leadership across North
America, Asia, and Africa. He is the Founder and President of Illuminant Capital Holdings,
LLC, a global advisory and capital introduction firm, and currently serves as Vice Chairman of
Simba Fiber, a pan-African fiber-optic infrastructure initiative aimed at bridging the digital
divide across 54 nations.
A graduate of UC Berkeley in Electrical Engineering & Computer Science and holder of a Juris
Doctor from Georgetown Law specializing in Corporate & Securities Law, Dinesh has structured
capital for LBOs, startups, sovereign funds, and major international defense deals. He played a
pivotal role in facilitating the first U.S.–India defense technology transfer (Firefinder Radar), and
has helped raise multi-million-dollar rounds for Silicon Valley tech firms and venture capital
funds including Blackstreet Capital and Iron Pillar.
In the public sector, Dinesh served as a Trustee of the Democratic National Committee (DNC)
and Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC), where he was among the top five
national fundraisers during the Clinton-Gore era. He has advised U.S. Presidents, Indian Prime
Ministers, governors, and global CEOs, working at the intersection of finance, public policy, and
diplomacy. He was instrumental in fostering early Indo–U.S. relations following the 1998
nuclear standoff and is credited with persuading President Clinton to formally recognize Diwali
at the White House.
Dinesh is currently focused on frontier technologies—AI, blockchain, data analytics—and
advancing impact-driven infrastructure, especially in emerging markets. His portfolio includes
advisory roles to award-winning AI startups, green energy ventures, and media-tech initiatives.