Hindawi

Hindawi Publishing Corporation was an academic publishing business founded in Cairo in 1997 by Ahmed Hindawi and Nagwa Abdel-Mottaleb. It developed from a small scientific-journal operation into one of the most prominent open-access publishers associated with the global scientific, technical and medical literature. Its first journal was the International Journal of Mathematics and Mathematical Sciences, acquired from an earlier publisher. Over time, Hindawi expanded through the launch of new journals and the acquisition of established titles, including the entomology journal Psyche, founded in the nineteenth century. The company’s principal business was publishing peer-reviewed journals rather than consumer books or general-interest media. Its portfolio covered mathematics, engineering, physics, chemistry, life sciences, medicine, public health, environmental studies and related fields. Hindawi moved all of its journals to a fully open-access model in 2007. Articles were generally made available under Creative Commons Attribution licensing, while publication costs were recovered through article processing charges paid by authors, institutions or funders. This model gave readers free access to published research and helped Hindawi compete with both subscription publishers and other large open-access groups. Hindawi’s growth was particularly rapid during the late 2000s and early 2010s. The company increased its journal count, article output and workforce, supported in part by Cairo’s comparatively low operating costs and large pool of educated technical and editorial workers. By the early 2010s it was publishing hundreds of journals and thousands of articles annually. Its portfolio included journals indexed in major scholarly databases, although the standing and editorial quality of individual titles varied. The company was also a founding member of the Open Access Scholarly Publishers Association. The brand attracted continuing debate about peer-review standards, editorial structures, unsolicited promotional email and the speed of its expansion. In 2010, some Hindawi journals were placed on Jeffrey Beall’s list of suspected predatory publishers; Hindawi successfully appealed and was later removed, although Beall continued to discuss the company critically. Other investigations produced mixed results: several sting-operation submissions aimed at Hindawi journals were rejected, while separate cases raised concerns about citation patterns, editorial manipulation and insufficiently rigorous review. Hindawi introduced sanctions and investigations in response to some of these issues, including re-review of papers connected to compromised editorial processes. The company became part of Wiley through the acquisition of Hindawi Limited in January 2021. The transaction covered the operating business and intellectual property associated with the Hindawi publishing operation. From 2022 onward, a major integrity crisis developed around fabricated or manipulated submissions associated with paper mills and compromised special issues. Hindawi announced large-scale retractions, and the number of affected articles rose into the thousands. Several journals were removed from or threatened with removal from indexing services, while some institutions and national research bodies issued warnings about particular Hindawi titles. Wiley subsequently announced that it would discontinue the Hindawi brand and integrate the remaining journals into its wider portfolio and operating processes. Four journals were closed in 2023, followed by the closure of additional former Hindawi titles in 2024. Hindawi therefore remains important as a publishing imprint and historical open-access case study, but the standalone Hindawi brand is no longer being maintained as an independent publishing identity.

Hindawi began in Cairo in 1997, founded by Ahmed Hindawi and Nagwa Abdel-Mottaleb. Its initial publishing activity centered on mathematics, beginning with the acquisition of the International Journal of Mathematics and Mathematical Sciences. The company gradually expanded into physical sciences, life sciences, medicine, engineering and public health. By the middle of the 2000s it owned dozens of journals and employed a substantial editorial and production staff. A decisive strategic change came in 2007, when Hindawi converted its portfolio to full open access. Instead of charging readers or libraries for subscription access, the company generally charged article processing fees to authors or their sponsors. This approach allowed research articles to be read without subscription barriers and supported rapid international expansion. By the late 2000s and early 2010s, Hindawi had grown to publish roughly one hundred or more journals, and later reached a portfolio of several hundred titles. Its growth was supported by new journal launches, acquisitions and the use of Cairo as a cost-effective editorial and publishing center. The business operated through two related entities. Hindawi Publishing Corporation was the original Cairo-based company, while Hindawi Limited was established in London in 2013. Hindawi Limited later acquired the assets and intellectual property of the original corporation, and the Cairo entity increasingly functioned as a publishing-services provider. The distinction between the companies is important because the brand was used across a corporate structure rather than representing only one legal entity. Hindawi’s expansion brought both recognition and criticism. Its journals obtained indexing and impact-factor coverage in parts of the scholarly publishing ecosystem, but observers questioned the consistency of peer review, the use of large volunteer editorial boards, solicitation practices and the rapid growth of special issues. In 2010, the publisher was temporarily associated with Jeffrey Beall’s list of suspected predatory publishers and was later removed after an appeal. Controlled tests also produced mixed but not uniformly negative results: some Hindawi journals rejected deliberately poor or fabricated submissions, while other investigations identified compromised editorial processes, anomalous citations or weakly supported published claims. The company became a major acquisition target as open-access publishing expanded. In January 2021, John Wiley & Sons purchased Hindawi Limited for an enterprise value of $298 million. Wiley initially retained Hindawi as a recognizable publishing brand, but the relationship became difficult after investigations into the integrity of articles published in Hindawi journals. In 2022, Hindawi announced more than 500 retractions from 16 journals. During 2023, evidence and investigations concerning paper mills, manipulated peer review and problematic special issues led to a much larger wave of retractions, eventually exceeding several thousand articles. The integrity crisis affected indexing, institutional reputation and Wiley’s strategy. Some Hindawi journals were removed from Web of Science, and various academic organizations or research institutions warned against counting publications in selected Hindawi titles for evaluation purposes. Wiley closed a number of journals, announced that it would no longer use the Hindawi name and began moving the remaining titles into its main portfolio under revised editorial and quality-control arrangements. The Hindawi brand is consequently best understood as a defunct standalone publisher whose journals and publishing assets were absorbed into Wiley.

• 2023

  Brand discontinuation announced

  [1]Hindawi (publisher)en.wikipedia.org

  After thousands of retractions and paper-mill concerns, Wiley announced that it would retire the Hindawi brand and integrate the remaining journals into its main portfolio.

• 2022

  Large-scale retractions begin

  [1]Hindawi (publisher)en.wikipedia.org

  Hindawi reported more than 500 retractions in 16 journals following investigations into manipulated editorial and peer-review activity.

• 2021

  Acquisition by Wiley

  [1]Hindawi (publisher)en.wikipedia.org

  John Wiley & Sons acquired Hindawi Limited for an enterprise value of $298 million.

• 2017

  Hindawi Limited holds the original publishing assets

  [1]Hindawi (publisher)en.wikipedia.org

  Hindawi Limited had acquired the assets and intellectual property of Hindawi Publishing Corporation, leaving the original Cairo company primarily associated with publishing services.

• 2013

  Hindawi Limited established in London

  [1]Hindawi (publisher)en.wikipedia.org

  A London-based related company, Hindawi Limited, was founded and later became the principal holder of the group’s publishing assets and intellectual property.

• 2007

  Portfolio converted to full open access

  [1]Hindawi (publisher)en.wikipedia.org

  Hindawi placed all of its journals under a fully open-access publishing model, generally using article processing charges and Creative Commons Attribution licensing.

• 1997

  Hindawi founded in Cairo

  [1]Hindawi (publisher)en.wikipedia.org

  Ahmed Hindawi and Nagwa Abdel-Mottaleb established the publishing company in Cairo, Egypt.

Open access academic publishing

• Academic journals · 1997

  Open-access scholarly journals

  Hindawi’s principal product was a large portfolio of peer-reviewed journals covering mathematics, engineering, physical sciences, life sciences, medicine, public health and related disciplines. From 2007 onward, the portfolio operated on a full open-access basis, with articles generally distributed under Creative Commons Attribution terms and publication funded through article processing charges.

• Mathematics journal · 1997

  International Journal of Mathematics and Mathematical Sciences

  This was Hindawi’s first journal, acquired from a previous publisher. It represented the company’s original concentration on mathematical research and formed part of the foundation for its later expansion into a broad scientific publishing portfolio.

• Entomology journal · 1874

  Psyche

  Psyche was an established entomological journal founded in 1874 and later acquired as part of Hindawi’s strategy of combining new journal launches with acquisitions of existing scholarly titles.

• Multidisciplinary scientific journal

  The Scientific World Journal

  A multidisciplinary scientific title associated with Hindawi and indexed in scholarly databases during parts of its history. It was also involved in scrutiny over anomalous citation patterns, including issues that partly predated Hindawi’s acquisition of the journal.

• 2023

  Paper-mill and special-issue integrity crisis

  Investigations connected thousands of Hindawi articles with paper-mill activity, manipulated peer review and problematic special issues. Retractions rose to more than 7,000 by the end of 2023 according to the referenced account, and several journals faced indexing sanctions or closure.

  Source

• 2022

  Retractions linked to editorial and peer-review manipulation

  Hindawi announced more than 500 article retractions across 16 journals after identifying cheating involving some editors and peer reviewers.

  Source

• 2015

  Investigation into compromised peer review

  Hindawi internally investigated three editors accused of subverting peer review through fake email accounts and flagged 32 published papers for renewed review.

  Source

• 2010

  Predatory-publishing classification dispute

  A subset of Hindawi journals was placed on Jeffrey Beall’s list of suspected predatory publishers. Hindawi appealed, and the publisher was subsequently removed from the list, although concerns about editorial standards and the economics of offshore scholarly publishing remained part of the debate.

  Source

Read more

• 2023

  Retire the Hindawi brand and integrate journals into WileyStrategy

  Background

  Wiley faced a major integrity crisis involving paper mills, compromised special issues and thousands of article retractions in Hindawi journals.

  Action taken

  Wiley announced that it would stop using the Hindawi name and manage the remaining journals through its main publishing portfolio and revised processes.

  Aftermath

  Four journals were closed in 2023 and additional former Hindawi journals were shuttered the following year. The standalone Hindawi brand became defunct.

  Source

• 2021

  Sell Hindawi Limited to WileyM&A

  Background

  Hindawi had become a significant international open-access publisher with a large journal portfolio.

  Action taken

  John Wiley & Sons acquired Hindawi Limited for an enterprise value of $298 million.

  Aftermath

  Hindawi operated within Wiley, initially retaining its brand identity before later being absorbed into Wiley’s main portfolio.

  Enterprise value. $298 million (January 2021 acquisition)

  Source

• 2007

  Adopt a fully open-access modelStrategy

  Background

  Hindawi sought to expand access to scientific literature and grow internationally without relying on conventional library subscriptions.

  Action taken

  The company converted all of its journals to open access and generally financed publication through article processing charges.

  Aftermath

  The model supported rapid portfolio and article growth, while also exposing the company to continuing debate about fees, editorial scalability and peer-review quality.

  Source

• 2021

  Hindawi acquired by John Wiley & Sons[1]Hindawi (publisher)en.wikipedia.org

  M&A

  John Wiley & Sons acquired Hindawi Limited for an enterprise value of $298 million. The acquisition brought the Hindawi publishing operation and its intellectual property into Wiley’s portfolio.

• 2007

  Hindawi adopts a fully open-access journal model[1]Hindawi (publisher)en.wikipedia.org

  Other

  Hindawi moved its journal portfolio to a complete open-access model, making its publications freely available to readers and funding publication largely through article processing charges.

1. 1Hindawi (publisher)en.wikipedia.org
2. 2Hindawi official websitehindawi.com