Inside MCA’s Finances: Seven Million Rufiyaa and Few Visible Results
According to verified documents from the State Bank of India (SBI), the previous administration of the Maldives Chess Association (MCA) received close to seven million rufiyaa in additional funding, on top of regular government allocations. During this same period, MCA repeatedly stated that there was not enough money to fund international travel or to offer sufficient prize money for local events. A review of all tournaments held during that term shows that the total spending on events is nowhere near the amount of funding received.
The comparison is clear: there is a massive gap between the funds that entered MCA and the visible activities organized. No major international events were hosted except the Western Asian Chess Tournament, no infrastructure was developed, and players continued to fund their own travel. Prize funds remained largely stagnant, and no meaningful improvements in chess promotion were observed.
The Maldives Chess Association has published a notice in the Government Gazette seeking an auditor, which underlines the need for transparency.
From 2018 to 2024, the Maldives Chess Association (MCA) ran a steady stream of tournaments while repeatedly telling top Maldivian players there was not enough money to fund international travel. This article brings together what we can document as entering MCA’s bank accounts and what MCA stated, or we observed, was spent on events, then asks MCA for transparency about the gap.
During most of this period, the MCA president was Hussain Shiyan. Hassan Nasih (Thathan) served as treasurer for the majority of the term, with Nooh Ali, the current MCA president, serving as treasurer in the final months. The vice president role was mostly held by Ahmed Ashraf and later by Mariyam Dhooma Moosa (who is married to Mohamed Rilwan, a figure with influence over several MCA-affiliated clubs). Other executive committee members included: Zeeshan A. Raheem, Fathimath Ithmeena, Hassan Mohamed, and Adam Shakir.
First, the money in.
We hold an SBI statement for MCA, shared by the current president, Nooh Ali.
It shows USD 168,867.51 entering the dollar account. At the official bank rate of 1 USD = 15.42 MVR, that converts to MVR 2,603,937.00. The rufiyaa account SBI statement shows MVR 4,606,844.96 entering. Combined, the SBI inflow is MVR 7,210,781.96. This is conservative. Reportedly government support was also paid into MCA’s Bank of Maldives (BML) account, separate from the SBI statement, and the real black-market exchange rate in this period was often around MVR 18 to 20 per USD. Using those market rates, the USD deposits alone would equate to roughly MVR 3,039,615.18 to MVR 3,377,350.20 instead of MVR 2,603,937.00. We have attached images of the statement pages with SBI stamp so readers can inspect the numbers themselves.
Second, the money out on events. Below is the tournament log, year by year, with a generous estimate of the total spent per event. Please note that “SPENT:” amount in all the events are an upper bound for the estimates made by our editors team. Notes like “profit event” reflect entry-fee-funded events with no prize fund. Also note that MCA has a dedicated playing area, the Hulhumalé Chess Arcade, so there should be no hall-rental costs. Core costs are usually prize funds, arbiters, trophies, and certificates. Even small hospitality like tea or coffee was typically not provided in MCA tournaments.
2018
– Interschool Chess Championship 2018 (U8, U10, U12, U14, U16, U18, U20), rapid. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 50,000.
2019
– 4th Interschool Chess Championship 2019 (U8, U10, U12, U14, U16, U18, U20), rapid. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 50,000.
– 2nd Inter-Office Chess Championship 2019, rapid. Remark: likely income of about MVR 2,000 from each office. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 20,000.
– National Junior Chess Championship 2019 (U10, U12, U14, U16), classic. Entry fee MVR 500 per player with hundreds of players, prize fund zero, profit event. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 0.
– Kids Rapid Chess Championship 2019, rapid. Entry fee charged, no prize fund. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 0.
– National Chess Championship 2019 (Open and Women), classic. Prize fund MVR 50,000 total, 1st Open prize MVR 15,000. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 80,000.
– National Club Chess Championship 2019, classic. Prize fund MVR 25,000. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 40,000.
– Association Cup 2019, classic. Prize fund MVR 20,000, visiting GM accommodation MVR 11,000. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 45,000.
2020
– Junior Championship 2020 (U12, U8, U16, U18, U14, U10), classic. Entry fee MVR 500, prize fund zero, profit event. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 0.
– Senior Championship 2020, classic. Prize money unknown or minimal, assumption used within spend. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 40,000.
– Maldives National Chess Championship 2020 (Women and Open), classic. Prize fund MVR 50,000 total, 1st Open prize MVR 10,000. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 70,000.
– 1st Maldives Online Chess Championship (U8, U10, U12, U14, U15, U16, U17), rapid. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 10,000.
– Selection Tournament for Asian Cup, rapid. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 5,000.
– Republic Cup 2020, rapid. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 5,000.
2021
– Selection Tournament for Asian Nations Cup 2021, rapid. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 5,000.
– FIDE Online Olympiad Selection 2021, rapid. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 5,000.
– 3rd Inter-Office Chess Championship 2021, rapid. Remark: likely income of about MVR 2,000 from each office. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 20,000.
– National Club Chess Championship 2021, classic. Prize fund MVR 25,000. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 40,000.
2022
– National Women’s and Open Chess Championship 2022, classic. Prize fund MVR 50,000 total, 1st Open prize MVR 10,000. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 70,000.
– Interschool Chess Championship 2022 (Open U13, U17, U19, Girls U9, U11, U15), rapid. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 50,000.
– Western Asian Junior Championship Selection, no prize fund. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 15,000.
– National Club Chess Championship 2022, classic. Prize fund MVR 25,000, 10,000, 5,000. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 55,000.
– National Youth and Junior Chess Championship, age groups, classic. Entry fee MVR 500, prize fund zero, profit event. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 0.
– 4th Inter-Office Chess Championship 2022, rapid. Remark: likely income of about MVR 2,000 from each office. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 20,000.
2023
– Interschool Chess Festival 2023, age groups, rapid. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 50,000.
– National Club Chess Championship 2023, classic. Prize fund MVR 25,000, 10,000, 5,000. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 55,000.
– National Open and Women’s Chess Championship 2023, classic. Prize fund MVR 50,000 total, 1st Open prize MVR 10,000. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 70,000.
– World Schools Chess Championship Selection 2023, rapid. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 5,000.
– Kellogg’s National Junior Chess Championship 2023, rapid. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 5,000.
2024
– Maldives National Blitz and Rapid Chess Championship 2024, Open and Women, blitz and rapid. Prize fund total MVR 15,000. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 30,000.
– Interschool Chess Festival 2024, age groups, rapid. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 50,000.
– National Chess Championship 2024, Open and Women, classic. Prize fund MVR 50,000 total, 1st Open prize MVR 10,000. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 70,000.
– Record Blitz One-Day Tournament 2024, blitz. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 2,000.
– National Junior Chess Championship 2024, age groups, classic. Entry fee MVR 500, prize fund zero, profit event. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 0.
– 6th Inter-Office Chess Championship 2024, rapid. Remark: likely income of about MVR 2,000 from each office. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 20,000.
Other events and notes
– Arbiter Training, main cost appears to be trainer stay. TOTAL SPENT: MVR 30,000.
– Western Asian Chess Championship hosting, Government reportedly paid close to MVR 2,000,000 to MCA’s BML account, outside the SBI statement. MCA’s stated obligation was food and accommodation for one official player per category, while other participants paid MCA. Given the grant size, the event should have been comfortably covered by BML funds and potentially profitable, so no extra SBI-side expense is assumed here.
Topline spend summary, based on the list above:
2018 = MVR 50,000; 2019 = MVR 235,000; 2020 = MVR 130,000; 2021 = MVR 70,000; 2022 = MVR 210,000; 2023 = MVR 185,000; 2024 = MVR 172,000.
Total on tournaments 2018 to 2024 = MVR 1,052,000.
Total including arbiter training = MVR 1,082,000.
When you compare the conservative SBI inflow of MVR 7,210,781.96 with the event spending of MVR 1,052,000 on tournaments, or MVR 1,082,000 including arbiter training, there is an unexplained difference of roughly MVR 6.16 million against tournaments only, or about MVR 6.13 million including arbiter training. That gap becomes even larger if you include government support paid into MCA’s BML account, and if you value the USD deposits at the real market rates of 18 to 20 instead of the bank rate of 15.42.
Meanwhile, when top players asked to represent Maldives abroad, MCA leadership, regularly said there was not enough money, so many players bought their own tickets to Asian events even while these balances existed. Given the roles named above and the club relationships involved, it is reasonable governance to ask for audited financial statements for each year from 2018 to 2024, a line-by-line account of all income including BML grants and all expenditure, documentation of selection policies, travel-support decisions, and any payments made for international representation, and an independent review of related-party risks. Until such disclosures are made, players and parents are left with a simple, pressing question: where did the money go?
