CONFIRMED CHAIRPERSONS AND SPEAKERS
| H.E. Dr. Ahmad Mohamed Ali Al-Madani |
President, Islamic Development Bank |
| H.E. Rasheed Mohammed Al Maraj |
Governor, Central Bank of Bahrain |
| H.E. Kim Jong Chang |
Governor, Financial Supervisory Service of Korea |
| H.E. Dr. Zeti Akhtar Aziz |
Governor, Bank Negara Malaysia (Central Bank of Malaysia) |
| H.E. Sheikh Abdulla Saoud Al-Thani |
Governor, Qatar Central Bank |
| H.E. Dr Muhammad Sulaiman Al-Jasser |
Governor, Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency and Chairman of the Council of the IFSB |
| H.E. Heng Swee Keat |
Governor, Monetary Authority of Singapore |
| H.E. Sultan Bin Nasser Al Suwaidi |
Governor, Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates |
| Professor Rifaat Ahmed Abdel Karim |
Secretary - General, Islamic Financial Services Board |
| Dr. Siti Chalimah Fadjrijah |
Deputy Governor, Bank Indonesia |
| Teo Swee Lian |
Deputy Managing Director (Prudential Supervision), Monetary Authority of Singapore |
| Paul Koster |
Chief Executive, Dubai Financial Services Authority |
| Professor Volker Nienhaus |
President, University of Marburg, Germany |
| Edmond Lau |
Executive Director (Monetary Management), Hong Kong Monetary Authority |
| Alexa Lam |
Executive Director, Securities & Futures Commission, Hong Kong |
| Jaseem Ahmad |
Director, Governance, Finance and Trade Division, Asian Development Bank |
| Tunc Tahsin Uyanik |
Sector Manager, Financial and Private Sector Development, East Asia and Pacific Region, The World Bank |
| Richard Thomas |
Chairman, Gatehouse Capital Plc, United Kingdom |
| Dato' Sri Abdul Wahid Omar |
President and Chief Executive Officer, Maybank Group, Malaysia |
| Dr. Manfred Dirrheimer |
Chief Executive Officer, FWU AG, Germany |
| Afaq Khan |
Standard Chartered Saadiq, UAE |
| Cesare Calari |
Managing Director, Wolfersohn & Co. LLC., USA |
| Professor Simon Archer |
Visiting professor, University of Reading, UK |
| Professor Kishore Mahbubani |
Dean and Professor in the Practice of Public Policy, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, Singapore
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| Christine Kuo |
Vice President and Senior Analyst, Financial Institutions Group
Moody's Investors Services, Singapore |
| David Vicary Abdullah |
Islamic Finance Specialist, Deloitte Southeast Asia |
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H.E. Dr. Ahmad Mohamed Ali Al-Madani
President, Islamic Development Bank
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Dr. Ahmad Mohamed Ali Al-Madani is President of the Islamic Development Bank (IDB). He has spent over 30 years in service of the IDB, from 1975 till now, save for leaving to serve as Secretary-General of the Muslim World League for two years (1993-1995). Before joining IDB, Dr. Al-Madani, who started off his career in the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Education, held various positions in the Ministry, as well as becoming Deputy Minister of Education for Technical Matters and Acting Rector of King Abdulaziz University.
Dr. Al-Madani holds a double Bachelor in Commerce and Law and Postgraduate degrees in Public Administration. He obtained his Ph.D. in Public Administration from the State University of New York with a dissertation on 'Financial Control before Disbursement - Comparative Study of the Financial System in Saudi Arabia and the State of New York.'
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H.E. Rasheed Mohammed Al Maraj
Governor, Central Bank of Bahrain
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Mr. Al Maraj has been Governor of the Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB), previously the Bahrain Monetary Agency (BMA), since January 2005.
As Governor, Mr. Al Maraj carries ministerial ranking and is the chief executive of the CBB, which is responsible for ensuring monetary and financial stability in Bahrain. The CBB is also the single regulator of Bahrain's financial services industry.
Mr. Al Maraj has a wealth of experience in finance, engineering and management and has served with the Government and the private sector.
His career highlights include senior positions with Government, having served as Assistant Under-Secretary at the then Finance and National Economy Ministry and Under-Secretary at the Ministry of Transportation.
Prior to his appointment as CBB Governor, Mr. Al Maraj was General Manager and Chief Executive Officer of the Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (Apicorp), which is based in Dammam, Saudi Arabia.
Currently, Mr. Al Maraj is on the Boards of the Economic Development Board (EDB), National Oil and Gas Authority (NOGA) and member of the Board of Trustees of the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies, UK.
He has previously served as Chairman of the Bahrain Telecommunications Company, a member of the Consultation Council of the Co-operation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf and the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) of Bahrain.
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H.E. Kim Jong Chang
Governor, Financial Supervisory Service of Korea
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Mr. Kim Jong Chang is Governor of the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) of Korea. Mr. Kim began his career in public service in 1976 at the Ministry of Finance where he went on to serve in key senior economic and financial posts. After more than two decades at the ministry, he was appointed Standing Commissioner of the Securities and Futures Commission in June, 1998. A year later, he was appointed Standing Commissioner of the Financial Supervisory Commission, and in February, 2000, Deputy Governor of the Financial Supervisory Service. Mr. Kim then took the helm of Industrial Bank of Korea as the Chairman and CEO in May, 2001.
During his term at IBK, he was widely credited with laying the groundwork for the bank's privatization efforts. After his tenure at IBK ended in February, 2004, Mr. Kim was appointed Member of the Monetary Policy Committee, the interest rate-setting body, at the Bank of Korea. Upon completing his term at the Monetary Policy Committee in April, 2006, Mr. Kim moved to the law firm Lee & Ko and worked as a senior advisor until March, 2008.
Mr. Kim graduated from Seoul National University with a B.A. in Commerce in 1971. He also received an M.A. in Economics from University of Washington in 1985, and an Honorary Ph.D. in Business Administration from Joongbu University in 2003.
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H.E. Dr. Zeti Akhtar Aziz
Governor, Bank Negara Malaysia (Central Bank of Malaysia)
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Dr. Zeti Akhtar Aziz was appointed Governor of Bank Negara Malaysia in May 2000. She has been with the central bank since 1985, in a career spanning several senior positions in monetary and financial policies, and reserve management. As Deputy Governor, Dr. Zeti presided over the formulation of the Financial Sector Masterplan, a 10-year road map for the development of the Malaysian financial system. As Governor, she oversaw the transformation of the financial system, that included wide-ranging financial reforms, the evolution of new financial institutions, strengthening of the financial markets and the rapid expansion of Islamic finance, and the transition to a managed float of the Ringgit exchange rate.
Dr. Zeti is a member of the United Nations General Assembly Commission of Experts on Reform of the International Monetary and Financial System, a high-level task force established to examine possible reforms of the global financial system.
She is also actively involved in the development of Islamic finance and in regional financial co-operation and is currently the Chairman of the "Task Force for Islamic Finance and Global Financial Stability", under the auspices of the Islamic Development Bank. She was also the chair of the Steering Committee for the establishment of the Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB) and had served as the IFSB Council Chairman for the 2007 term. Dr. Zeti was also instrumental in the establishment of the International Centre for Education in Islamic Finance (INCEIF), an initiative undertaken to fast track the development of human capital and talents for Islamic finance.
In promoting regional integration initiatives, Dr. Zeti chaired the Executives' Meeting of East Asia-Pacific Central Banks (EMEAP) Taskforce on "Regional Cooperation among Central Banks in Asia" to draw up the blueprint for future financial cooperation in the region. She is also a member of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) Central Bank Governance Group since 2001. Dr. Zeti is also one of the founding members of the Asian Consultative Council for the BIS and is currently the Chairman of the Council.
Dr. Zeti received her Bachelor of Economics (Honours) from the University of Malaya and her PhD from the University of Pennsylvania. |
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H.E. Sheikh Abdulla Saoud Al-Thani
Governor, Qatar Central Bank
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Sheikh Abdulla Saud Al Thani was appointed as Governor of Qatar Central Bank in May 2006. He started his career at the Bank in 1982 and has served in various supervisory positions as well as the Foreign Exchange Department. He was Deputy Governor in 1990 to 2001, and left to serve as President/Chairman of the State Audit Bureau from 2001 - 2006, before assuming his current position.
Sheikh Abdulla Saud Al Thani is currently Head of the Board of Directors of Qatar Industrial Development Bank (since July 1996), as well as a Board Member of the College of Business and Economy, Qatar University and President of General Retirement and Pension Authority (both since 2006).
Sheikh Abdulla holds a BA in Economics from the United States of America, Master of Business Administration in Banking and Finance, respectively from Untied Kingdom and United States of America.
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H.E. Dr Muhammad Sulaiman Al-Jasser
Governor, Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency and Chairman of the Council of the IFSB
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Muhammad Sulaiman Al-Jasser was appointed Governor, Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA) in February 2009. He joined SAMA as Vice Governor in 1995. His previous positions include Acting Deputy Minister of Finance for Budget and Organisation, and Executive Director for Saudi Arabia at the International Monetary Fund. He was awarded the King Abdulaziz Medal of the First Order.
Mr. Al-Jasser has been and is still involved as Chairman and Member of the Board / Council in various organisations and projects. They include Saudi Telecom Co., The Arab Investment Company, "Technical Saudi Negotiating Team" for negotiations with the International Oil Companies, Eisenhower Fellowships Nominating Committee for Saudi Arabia, Fund for Supporting Research and Educational Programs at King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Saudi Arabian Mining Co. (MA'ADEN), Saudi Arabian Negotiation Team on the accession of Saudi Arabia to the WTO, Saudi Public Pension Agency, Saudi Arabian Airlines, Consultative Council of Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector, Board of Trustees, The Centennial Fund and Higher Committee of King Saud University Endownment.
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H.E. Heng Swee Keat
Governor, Monetary Authority of Singapore
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Mr. Heng, as the Managing Director of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), oversees the policies and operations of MAS. MAS serves as the central bank of Singapore, as well as an integrated supervisor of the financial services industry, covering banking, insurance and capital markets.
Prior to this, Mr. Heng was the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Trade and Industry, overseeing economic policy, trade negotiations, and the regulation and development of industry. Before assuming this appointment, Mr. Heng was the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Trade Development Board.
Between 1997 and 2000, Mr. Heng served in the Prime Minister's Office as the Principal Private Secretary to the then-Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew. Mr. Heng has also served in various positions in the Singapore Civil Service. In 2001, Mr. Heng was awarded the Gold Medal in Public Administration for his contribution to the public service in Singapore.
Mr. Heng graduated with an MA in Economics from the Cambridge University, United Kingdom. He also holds a Master of Public Administration from the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University.
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H.E. Sultan Bin Nasser Al Suwaidi
Governor, Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates
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Mr. Sultan Bin Nasser Al Suwaidi is a UAE national, born in Abu Dhabi in 1953. He graduated with a B.S. degree in Business Administration and Finance, and started his career at Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) in 1978, at the Finance and Administration Department. At ADIA, part of Mr. Al Suwaidi??£¤s job was to supervise the Cash Management Division (the dealing room) and the Accounting Division. Mr. Al Suwaidi also, represented ADIA on Boards of many banks and financial institutions, attended many specialized seminars and workshops, and received certificates.
In 1982, Mr. Al Suwaidi moved to Abu Dhabi Investment Company (ADIC), where he served as General manager of the Company. His mandate was to restructure the Company and stream-line its operations.
In early 1984, Mr. Al Suwaidi was nominated for the position of General manager of Gulf International Bank (Bahrain), and his nomination was accepted by the 7 Gulf countries shareholders. At GIB Mr. Al Suwaidi redirected the strategy of the Bank towards doing more business within the region.
In late 1985, Mr. Al Suwaidi was offered the position of Managing Director and CEO of Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, a bank which resulted from merging three local banks, that ran into financial difficulties. The mandate of Mr. Al Suwaidi was to take steps to implement the merger, structure the new bank??£¤s business plan and run its day-to-day affairs. The bank was able to reduce cost, increase revenue, take sufficient provisions and make a modest profit in the first year after the merger.
At the end of 1991, Mr. Al Suwaidi was nominated for the position of Governor of Central bank of the UAE, and his nomination was successful. He joined Central bank of the UAE as Governor on 18th Dec. 1991. At the Central bank Mr. Al Suwaidi was able to introduce or modernize many banking regulations. He also, emphasized the roles of Banking Supervision /Examination and Information Technology (IT). As a result, a well staffed and a strong Banking Supervision / Examination Department and an Innovative IT Division has emerged. In 1994 Mr. Al Suwaidi worked on establishing the UAESwitch which started operations in 1996 and was able to connect all bank ATMs in the UAE. He, also, supported the establishment of an automated cheque Clearing System for UAE banks.
At the moment, the Central Bank is in the process of implementing many new initiatives such as, the Image Cheque Clearing System, the Mobile Phone Payment System and Basil II, and Mr. Al Suwaidi is very instrumental in pushing these initiatives forward.
In 2006 Mr. Al Suwaidi received his award as The Central Bank Governor of the year for the Middle East from Emerging Markets Publication, the awarding ceremony was held during the IMF/WB meetings in Singapore.
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Professor Rifaat Ahmed Abdel Karim
Secretary - General, Islamic Financial Services Board
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Rifaat Ahmed Abdel Karim is the Secretary-General of the Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB), a post he has held since the IFSB started to operate in 2003. Prior to his current post, he was the Secretary-General of the Accounting and Auditing Organisation for Islamic Financial Institutions. He is a member of the Consultative Advisory Group of the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board, now serving his second three-year term, and the International Liaison Group, Basel Committee for Banking Supervision. He previously served as a member of the Standards Advisory Council of the International Accounting Standards Board, for two consecutive terms, ending November 2008.
Professor Rifaat is a Visiting Professor at the ICMA Centre, Henley Business School, University of Reading, UK, and is a Member of the Governing Council of International Centre for Education in Islamic Finance, Malaysia. He is the co-author of Islamic Finance: Growth and Innovation, Islamic Finance: The Regulatory Challenge and Business and Accounting Ethics in Islam. He is the first recipient of the Euromoney Outstanding Contribution to the Development of Islamic Finance Award, and other distinguished awards.
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Dr. Siti Chalimah Fadjrijah
Deputy Governor, Bank Indonesia
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Siti Fadjrijah took her bachelor degree in accounting at Universitas Gadjah Mada, Yogyakarta and completed her doctoral degree in strategic management at Universitas Indonesia. She began her career at Bank Indonesia in 1979 where most of her services has been in the banking sector. During 1998 until 2002, Fadjrijah served as Director of Bank Supervision and in 2003 she assumed the position of Director of Banking License and Information. Siti Fadjrijah was appointed as Deputy Governor of Bank Indonesia in May 2005.
She is responsible for the banking supervision and islamic banking area. Siti Fadjrijah also actively involved in several notable organisations, such as: Director of International for Islamic Financial Market (IIFM) Bahrain, Expert Board of Indonesian Association of Moslem Scholars (ICMI), Head of Indonesian National Board of Amil Zakal (Baznas), and Organising Board of Indonesian Accountant Association (IAI). |
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Teo Swee Lian
Deputy Managing Director
(Prudential Supervision),
Monetary Authority of Singapore
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Ms Teo Swee Lian is Deputy Managing Director, Prudential Supervision, of the MAS, with responsibility for the supervision of all banks, finance and insurance companies licensed in Singapore. During her time with MAS, Ms Teo has worked in various areas including reserves management, development and external relations, strategic planning, and banking and insurance supervision. Ms Teo has a B.Sc. in Mathematics from Imperial College, London University, and a M.Sc. in Applied Statistics from Linacre College, Oxford University. Ms Teo was recently awarded the Public Administration Medal (Gold) in August 2006. |
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Paul Koster
Chief Executive, Dubai Financial Services Authority
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Paul M Koster was appointed Chief Executive of the DFSA on 1 December, 2008.
He is the former Commissioner and Member of the Executive Board of the Autoriteit
Financiele Markten (Netherlands Authority for the Financial Markets). Other positions
previously held by him include Executive Vice President (Corporate Internal Audit),
Royal Philips Electronics 1998-2001; Managing Partner Corporate Finance, Coopers &
Lybrand 1988-1998; Chief Compliance Officer and Acting Commissioner of Quotations,
Amsterdam Stock Exchange 1986-1988; and carried out a number of senior finance
functions in his earlier career, having trained as an accountant with Arthur Andersen.
He is a licensed Register (Chartered) Accountant and served as Chair of CESR-Fin from
May 2006-December 2007 and was Chair of SISE (sub-committee on international
standards endorsement) within CESR from May 2004-April 2006. He was also a
member of the International Organisation of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) and
represented the Netherlands on IOSCO's Chairs committees.
He is a Dutch national, married and has two adult children.
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Professor Volker Nienhaus
President, University of Marburg, Germany
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Dr. Volker Nienhaus (born 1951): 1989 to 2004 full professor of economics at the German universities of Trier (1989-1990) and Bochum (1990-2004), since 2004 president of the University of Marburg and honorary professor at the University of Bochum. Member of several academic advisory committees, including the German Orient-Foundation (1993-2006), the Federal Ministry of Economic Co-operation and Development (1998-2008), the Federal Agency for Civic Education (since 2002).
Member of the Governing Council of the International Centre for Education in Islamic Finance (INCEIF, Kuala Lumpur) since 2006 and consultant to the Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB, Kuala Lumpur). Research interests in service sector economics, economic systems, transformation economics, international economics, Islamic economics and finance. Numerous books and articles on Islamic economics and Islamic banking and finance since the 1980s.
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Edmond Lau
Executive Director (Monetary Management), Hong Kong Monetary Authority
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Mr Edmond Lau is responsible for monetary management, and examining and developing strategic responses to the impact on the HKMA's policies and operations of such processes as the globalisation and liberalisation of financial markets and technological change. Mr Lau joined the HKMA in 1997 as Head (Banking Development) and has been involved in banking reform and the establishment of the Deposit Protection Scheme. He took up position as Administrative Assistant to the Chief Executive of the HKMA in 2004 after a one-year secondment to the Financial Services and Treasury Bureau and appointed Executive Director (Strategy and Risk) in June 2005, before appointed to his present position in September 2007. Before joining the HKMA Mr Lau was an Administrative Officer in the Hong Kong Government. |
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Alexa Lam
Executive Director, Securities & Futures Commission, Hong Kong
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Ms Alexa Lam is the Deputy Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director of the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), Hong Kong. She heads the Policy, China and Investment Products Division. Her role covers the development of overall policy for the SFC as a whole, with a particular emphasis on mainland China, as well as the regulation and approval of investment products.
Initiatives led by Ms Lam include:
* Major law reform - enactment of the Securities and Futures Ordinance in 2001
* Launching of retail hedge funds in 2002
* Reformed margin financing rules and industry practice
* Roll-out of regulatory platform to enable Hong Kong to become a hub for hedge fund managers
* Encouraged innovation and growth in the asset management industry with introduction of new products - first exchange-traded actively-managed closed- end A-share fund, 130/30 fund, commodities index fund, Islamic fund and gold ETF.
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Jaseem Ahmad
Director, Governance, Finance and Trade Division, Asian Development Bank
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Since May 2006, as Director, Governance and Finance Division, Mr. Ahmed has been supervising the ADB's financial sector and governance operations in the Philippines, Viet Nam, Indonesia, Thailand, Brunei, Malaysia, Lao PDR and Cambodia. He earlier worked on Sri Lanka, Kazakstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Peoples Republic of China, and India.
In his present capacity Mr. Ahmed oversees the provision of knowledge products and a loan pipeline of about $900 million annually for policy reform projects and programs in the financial and governance sectors.
He is responsible for supervising at the ADB its jointly financed program of support with the Islamic Financial Services Board for the development of prudential and supervision standards for Islamic Finance.
He was previously the Director of the Governance, Finance and Trade Division, Mekong Department, ADB, as well as Adviser to the Department's Director General. Prior to that, as Head of the ADB's Extended Mission to Thailand, Mr. Ahmed oversaw the opening of the ADB's Thailand Resident Mission in January 2005.
Mr. Ahmed joined the ADB in 1992. He has a BA in economics from the University of Sussex and also holds post graduate degrees in economics from Yale University.
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Tunc Tahsin Uyanik
Sector Manager, Financial and Private Sector Development, East Asia and Pacific Region, The World Bank
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Prior to his appointment as the Sector Manager of the Financial and Private Sector of East Asia and Pacific Region, Dr. Tunc Uyanik held the position of Sector Manager, Financial and Private Sector Development in Europe and Central Asia Region with the World Bank Group.
Dr. Uyanik assumed lead responsibility in the financial sector and private sector development related policy dialogue with the Governments, also led various operations, including: banking sector restructuring, bank liquidation and privatization; bank restructuring, asset recovery, management, and liquidation; capital market development; lines of credit and guarantees, in Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Macedonia, Romania, Russian Federation, Tajikistan, Turkey, Uzbekistan and EU accession countries. In addition, he led the World Bank teams during the implementation of Financial Sector Assessment Programs (FSAP) for Kyrgyz Republic and Russian Federation.
Dr. Uyanik is currently leading the World Bank Group's efforts on Islamic finance in terms of coordinating the analytical and operational work. Prior to joining the World Bank, Dr. Uyanik worked in managerial and advisory positions in various Turkish Banks. Also, he was an Associate Professor of Finance and Accounting at Hacettepe University, Turkey. |
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Richard Thomas
Chairman, Gatehouse Capital Plc, United Kingdom
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Richard is Chairman of Gatehouse Bank plc, the 5th Sharia compliant bank recently authorised by the FSA in London, and Managing Director of GSH (UK) Ltd, a Sharia compliant investment and advisory firm also based in the City of London and also authorised by the FSA. Both companies are ultimately subsidiaries of The Securities House KSCC of Kuwait.
In a career spanning 29 years in Merchant and Investment Banking in the City of London , the last 25 years have been entirely in "Islamic Financial Services" and dedicated to establishing the Islamic economic model as viable in the heart of the City of London. Richard has previously worked for Saudi International Bank, United Bank of Kuwait and Arab Banking Corporation, helping set up the Islamic asset management units in each one. He left ABC in 2007 to follow the vision of Mr Ayman Boodai, set up GSH (UK) Ltd and join the foundation committee to set up Gatehouse Bank plc from scratch.
Richard is a Fellow of the Securities & Investment Institute (SII). He is member of the UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) Financial Services Sector Advisory Board and Chairman of the Islamic Finance Sub Group. Richard is recently appointed by UKTI as Special Representative for Kuwait. In addition he is an HMRC Tax Advisory Group member (IFS). He is also a British Expertise Advisory Council Member and a member of the Global Association of Risk Professionals (GARP). GSH UK is a member of the Middle East Association.
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Dato' Sri Abdul Wahid Omar
President and Chief Executive Officer, Maybank Group, Malaysia
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Dato' Sri Abdul Wahid bin Omar is the President and CEO of Maybank, Malaysia's largest banking group, since May 2008. He is a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (UK) and a Member of the Malaysian Institute of Accountants.
Maybank is the third large organisation that he has led as CEO. Prior to joining Maybank, he was Group Chief Executive Officer of Telekom Malaysia Berhad from July 2004. He was formerly Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of UEM Group Berhad and UEM World Berhad as well as Executive Vice Chairman of PLUS Expressways Berhad.
Dato' Sri Abdul Wahid had also served at Telekom Malaysia Berhad as Chief Financial Officer in 2001. His strong track record in corporate and financial management began with the banking sector in 1988 when he joined Bumiputra Merchant Bankers Berhad in the Corporate Banking Department. He later took on senior management positions as Director of Group Corporate Services and Divisional Director, Capital Market & Securities of Amanah Capital Partners Berhad overseeing the overall direction and performance of the division which included discount houses and money broking firms. He was also the Chairman of Amanah Short Deposits Berhad and a past Chairman of Association of Discount Houses in Malaysia. Dato' Sri Abdul Wahid was also a Director of Amanah Merchant Bank Berhad.
At Maybank, Dato' Sri Abdul Wahid is a director of a number of Maybank Group companies including Mayban Fortis Holdings Berhad and Maybank Investment Bank Berhad.
He is currently also a director of Bursa Malaysia Berhad, Cagamas Holdings Berhad, Malaysian Electronic Payment System (1997) Sdn Bhd (MEPS), Perbadanan Usahawan Nasional Berhad as well as a member of the Financial Reporting Foundation of Malaysia and the Investment Panels of Lembaga Tabung Haji, Kumpulan Wang Persaraan (KWAP) and Kumpulan Wang Simpanan Pekerja (EPF).
In recognition of his outstanding leadership in the corporate sector, Dato' Sri Abdul Wahid was the recipient of the Malaysia's CEO of the Year Award from Business Times and Maybank / American Express in 2006. |
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Dr. Manfred Dirrheimer
Chief Executive Officer, FWU AG, Germany
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Executive Board Member &
Investment Committee Member
Al-Ahli Takaful Company, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Background
1975: MA in economics, University Konstanz
1977: PhD in economics, University Konstanz
1978: Senior research fellow Science Centre Berlin, Berlin
1981: Professor of economics, University of Dallas
1983: CEO, President and Founder of FWU, an internationally renowned financial services
company in the fields of Life Assurance, Commission Factoring, Asset
Management, Takaful and especially Bancatakaful.
IFSB Observer Member (Islamic Financial Services Board).
Headquartered in Munich with international offices in Luxembourg, Dubai & Kuala Lumpur.
Dr. Dirrheimer is member in supervisory and advisory boards of companies in the financial sector and consumer goods industry.
Born: November 9, 1951
Married; three children
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Afaq Khan
Chief Executive Officer, Islamic Finance, Standard Chartered Saadiq, UAE
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Afaq Khan is the CEO of Standard Chartered Saadiq; the global Islamic banking business of Standard Chartered Bank.
Afaq joined Standard Chartered Bank in 2003 with the mandate to launch the Islamic business division for the Bank. Since then, Afaq has been responsible in the strategic build up of a global Islamic banking business covering retail, corporate and investment banking, across geographies with a wide suite of product capabilities and award winning solutions.
Standard Chartered Saadiq has rolled out around 100 products and solutions across both consumer and wholesale banking. During the process it has received numerous awards, including "Islamic Project Finance House" and "Islamic Deal of the Year" awards from Euromoney, and several "Deals of the Year 2007 and 2008" from Islamic Finance News.
Afaq has over 20 years of banking experience and has held global responsibility for origination, structuring and distribution of Islamic structured financings including Debt Capital Market issues. He has been involved in a number of landmark transactions. His in-depth banking experience has earned him a number of industry "firsts" including leading the HSBC team that structured and successfully placed the first global Sukuk by the Government of Malaysia and more recently, the first local currency Sukuk programmes to be issued by the Government of Pakistan and the Monetary Authority of Singapore.
Afaq is a member of a various high profile advisory boards which include, Islamic Finance Advisory Council of DIFC, International Islamic Finance Market (IIFM) in Bahrain, Islamic Finance Expert Group (UK Govt) and Member of Task Force of Hong Kong Monetary Agency (Hong Kong).Afaq holds an MBA from the University of Western Illinois.
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Cesare Calari
Managing Director, Wolfersohn & Co. LLC., USA
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Cesare
Cesare Calari is a Managing Director of Wolfensohn & Company, an investment firm specializing in corporate advisory services and private equity investments in emerging markets.
Prior to joining Wolfensohn in October 2006, Mr. Calari had a long career at the World Bank Group, which he joined in 1981 after brief stints at the Bank of Italy and in private law practice. Much of this career was spent at the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the World Bank's private sector financing arm.
At the World Bank Group, Mr. Calari held various senior positions, including Head of the IFC Brazil and Mercosur Division, Director of the IFC Africa Department, Director of the IFC Global Financial Markets Group and, most recently (2001-2006), World Bank Financial Sector Vice President. In this latter capacity, Mr. Calari was responsible for the Bank's activities in the financial sector, including research and policy development, advisory services and sector lending for reform and restructuring. Mr. Calari also represented the Bank in various bodies responsible for the development of a new International Financial Architecture, including the Financial Stability Forum. He also served as Chairman of CGAP, a global facility for the promotion of microfinance.
Mr. Calari is an Adjunct Professor of Finance at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) in Washington DC, and a member of the Capital Markets Advisory Board of Georgetown University McDonough School of Business, of the Editorial Board of "Savings and Development", and of the Bretton Woods Committee. He has served on various corporate boards, including Moneda Asset Management (Chile), Zivnostenska Banka (Czech Republic), International Bank in Poland, and Nomura Hungary.
Mr. Calari, an Italian national, has studied Law at the University of Bologna Law School (JD 1977), Economics and International Affairs at Johns Hopkins SAIS (MA 1979) and has attended executive development courses at Harvard and Stanford.
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Professor Simon Archer
Visiting professor, University of Reading, UK
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Simon Archer MA PhD FCA FRSA is Visiting Professor at the ICMA Centre in the Henley Business School, University of Reading, UK. Previously, he was Professor of Financial Management at the University of Surrey, UK, having been Midland Bank Professor of Financial Sector Accounting at the University of Wales, Bangor. He has been a visiting professor at various universities and business schools, including Bordeaux, Metz, ESCP-EAP and HEC in France, Frankfurt and Koblenz in Germany, and IIUM in Malaysia. After studies in Philosophy, Politics and Economics at Oxford University, he qualified as a Chartered Accountant and became Partner in charge of Management Consultancy Services in Price Waterhouse, Paris.
Professor Archer's main research interests are in the fields of
International Accounting and Islamic Finance, including the financial reporting, capital adequacy, risk management and corporate governance of financial institutions. His published works include the International Accounting and Financial Reporting Standards Guide, Miller European Accounting Guide, Islamic Finance: Innovation and Growth, Islamic Finance: the Regulatory Challenge, and most recently Takaful (Islamic Insurance):Concepts and Regulatory Issues. He has also undertaken consultancy work in relation to Islamic financial services, in which connection his clients have included the IFSB, AAOIFI and A'Ayan Leasing and Investment Co, Kuwait.
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Professor Kishore Mahbubani
Dean and Professor in the Practice of Public Policy, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, Singapore
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Kishore Mahbubani is currently the Dean and Professor in the Practice of Public Policy at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy (LKY SPP) at the National University of Singapore. Before this, he served in the Singapore Foreign Ministry from 1971 to 2004, where he was Permanent Secretary from 1993 to 1998. He also served twice as Singapore's Ambassador to the UN. Prof Mahbubani has published and spoken in all corners of the globe and is the author of "Can Asians Think?", "Beyond the Age of Innocence: Rebuilding Trust between America and the World", and "The New Asian Hemisphere: the irresistible shift of global power to the East". He graduated in philosophy from Singapore and Canada and served as a Fellow of the Center for International Affairs in Harvard University from 1991 to 1992. The Foreign Policy Association Medal was awarded to him in New York in June 2004 with the following opening words in the citation: "A gifted diplomat, a student of history and philosophy, a provocative writer and an intuitive thinker". He was also listed as one of the top 100 public intellectuals in the world by Foreign Policy and Prospect magazines in September 2005 and was also included in the March 2009 Financial Times list of Top 50 individuals (including Obama, Wen Jiabao and Sarkozy) who would shape the debate on the future of capitalism.
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Christine Kuo
Vice President and Senior Analyst, Financial Institutions Group
Moody's Investors Services, Singapore
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Christine Kuo is a Vice President - Senior Analyst with Moody's Investors Service. She is part of the Financial Institutions Group and has direct rating responsibility for Singaporean and Malaysian banks.
Prior to joining Moody's in late 2006, Christine was First Vice President
and Head of Fubon Financial Holding Company's corporate development division. Her major responsibilities were strategic planning and investor relations. She has also worked on equity research for Morgan Stanley, on financial institutions and corporate ratings at Taiwan Ratings Corp, in treasury marketing and trading at UBS, and in Taiwan central bank's economic research department.
Christine graduated with honor from University of California, Los Angeles,
where she received a BA and an MA in Economics. |
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David Vicary Abdullah
Islamic Finance Specialist, Deloitte Southeast Asia
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Daud is a practice specialist attached to Deloitte Southeast Asia's Gulf Institution and Islamic Finance practice. He has been in the Finance and Consulting Industry for more than 35 years, with significant experience in Asia, Europe, Latin America and the Middle East. Since 2002 he has focused almost exclusively on Islamic Finance.
Daud started his career with Lloyds Bank, followed by Chemical Bank and Midland Bank, where he gained experience in Retail Banking Operations, Internal Audit, Back Office Systems, IT support and Internal Consultancy. He spent 7 years as a Partner/Director with Deloitte Consulting where he was responsible for setting up the firms Global Centre of Excellence for Islamic Finance based in Malaysia and involved in developing and running Shariah Review Programs and the transformation of financial institutions to provide Islamic Financial servics.
Daud was the first Managing Director of Hong Leong Islamic Bank, where under his guidance, the Group successfully transformed an Islamic Banking Window into a full-fledged Islamic Banking subsidiary. During his time at Hong Leong, he was also closely involved in the planning for and launch of Hong Leong Tokio Marine Takaful, wherehe was a Board member. Following that,he became the Chief Operating Officer at Asian Finance Bank, a brand new Islamic Bank, where he was responsible for establishing the infrastructure to support the business lines, as well as opening new branches and establishing a representative office in Jakarta.
Daud holds an Economic and Social History Honours degree from the University of Bristol, England, is a distinguished fellow of the Islamic Banking and Finance Institute of Malaysia (IBFIM) and a former Board member (2003–2007) of theAccounting and Auditing Organisation for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI). He is a frequent speaker and commentator on matters relating to Islamic Finance, has been a contributor to a number of books on the subject and is currently co-authoring a book on Islamic Finance for non-Muslims. |
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