Two senior executives from London-based Middle Eastern investment company MerchantBridge died after their plane crashed in northern Iraq on 4 February.

Basil al-Rahim, the founder and chief executive of MerchantBridge and senior executive Abdallah Lahoud were among the seven people killed when a plane crashed shortly after taking off from the Sulaimaniyah airport in northern Iraq.

“The partners and employees of MerchantBridge intend to continue the valued work of our colleagues Basil and Abdallah,” MerchantBridge chairman, Abdulaziz al-Abdulkader said in a statement. “We ask for a period of calm reflection while we decide how we best continue to advise our investors and partners.”

Two bankers from the US’ JP Morgan also died in the accident including Dubai-based Morad Michal. The three member crew also died in the crash.

Merchant Bridge is a private direct investment company that was founded in London in 1997. It is backed by families from the GCC region of the Middle East and is predominately involved in investing in emerging markets, especially Iraq.