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Speakers

Guest Speaker
		Gus Takkale International Motivational GURU speaker and Author GTI Gus Takkale helps people visualise and realise their goals. He challenges them to raise their standards and make things happen. He leads various leadership and change seminars in North America, Europe and the Middle East. Gus is a business graduate and an NLP practitioner. His background includes working as a VP of HR and Transformation with software giant SAP, Regional Director for HILTI the multinational power tools company, and in consulting with Arthur Anderson and KPMG. Gus is an author and active speaker on personal change, self development, corporate culture and talent management.
Key Speakers
		Afaq Khan CEO, Standard Chartered SAADIQ 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 for the strategic build up of the international Islamic banking business covering retail, corporate and investment banking, culminating in the launch of the ‘Saadiq’ brand for Islamic banking at Standard Chartered Bank in 2007. Standard Chartered Saadiq has a wide suite of product capabilities having rolled out over 100 products and solutions across geographies and in both consumer and wholesale banking divisions. During the process, Standard Chartered Saadiq has received numerous awards, including being voted “Best International Islamic Bank” in 2009 by Euromoney and “Best Islamic Investment Bank” by the Asset Triple A Awards for Islamic Finance in 2009. Afaq has over 20 years of banking experience and is actively involved in helping governments develop Islamic banking regulations. His in-depth banking experience has led him to a number of industry “firsts” including the inaugural USD denominated sukuk issued by the Republic of Indonesia; the first sovereign sukuk issued in AED denomination by the Emirate of Ras Al-Khaimeh; as well as the first local currency sukuk programmes 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 the DIFC, International Islamic Finance Market (IIFM) in Bahrain, Islamic Finance Expert Group (UK Govt.) and is a member of the Task Force of the Hong Kong Monetary Agency. Afaq holds an MBA from the University of Western Illinois.
		Samad Sirohey CEO, Citi Islamic Prior to taking on the responsibility for Citi’s Islamic business, Samad was the Co-Head of Citi's Bond Origination business in Central Eastern Europe Middle East and Africa. He has significant experience of introducing issuers from CEEMEA region to international capital markets. Samad has worked with several borrowers from the Middle East region. Most notably, Samad has lead a number of benchmark debut transactions for issuers including Govt. of Abu Dhabi, Mubadala, TDIC, RasGas, Govt. of Dubai's debut Sukuk offering (Dubai Civil Aviation), DEWA, TAQA, DPW, ABC, UNB, FGB, BBK. Samad has also been involved in Islamic capital finance transactions since the development of the Sukuk market. He lead Islamic Development Bank's debut Sukuk issue in 2002, followed by Sukuk issues for the Bahrain Monetary Agency, Republic of Pakistan, the Dubai government (through Dubai Civil Aviation) and Sorouh Real Estate Securitization Sukuk. During his time with Citi, Samad has also been highly involved in the CEEMEA liability management space having led some of the region's landmark transactions, including among others: Bulgaria Exchange, Kyivstar Exchange and consent solicitation, Nigeria par bonds tender (2002), oil warrant tender (2007) and Polish Oil & Gas buyback.
		Mohamad Nedal Alchaar Secretary General, AAOIFI Dr. Mohamad Nedal Alchaar is Secretary General of Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions, an international organization with over 200 institutional members from over 45 countries. He was previously Director of Market Performance Analysis at Fannie Mae and Vice President at Johnson & Higgins in Washington D.C. He also taught at George Washington University, where he received Ph.D. in Monetary Economics. He has published books and scientific articles on finance, monetary policy and exchange rates analysis. Dr. Alchaar has been included in 500 Most Influential Muslims 2009 publication; World’s 100 Most Powerful Arabs and Bahrain Power List by Arabian Business; and Who’s Who in the Middle East by CNBC Europe.
		Rushdi Siddiqui Global Head of Islamic Finance, Thomson Reuters Rushdi Siddiqui is the Global Head of Islamic Finance at Thomson Reuters. In this role, Mr. Siddiqui works closely with Islamic finance and banking professionals, including fund managers, treasury, financial hubs, regulators, stock exchanges, central banks, Takaful (insurance) entities, Halal industry, and intra-OIC (57 Muslim countries), to further strengthen Thomson Reuters business. Mr. Siddiqui joined Thomson Reuters from Dow Jones, where he was global director for their Islamic Market Indices. Over his 10 years there, Mr. Siddiqui led the entry and expansion of the Dow Jones Indexes into Islamic finance, resulting in numerous awards from leading finance organizations and media outlets. Mr. Siddiqui has considerable experience in the financial markets, having worked at a Wall Street investment bank and commercial bank in the 1990s. Mr. Siddiqui has authored a number of white papers and articles on Islamic indexes for publications including ABANA Review, CPI Financial, the Chicago Journal of International Law, and Euromoney, and is a frequent speaker at industry events hosted by Harvard, Columbia Business School, London Business School, Oxford, the Economist, Islamic Development Bank, Malaysia’s MIFC, IIRME (Dubai), and more. Mr. Siddiqui holds a JD from Albany Law School of Union University, an MBA in international business from Baruch College, and a Bachelor of Science in Management and Marketing from New York University.
		Mian Muhammad Nazir SVP, Dar Al Sharia Before joining Dubai Islamic Bank in 2005, Mian held the roles of Legal Advisor for Dallah Al Baraka Group, Saudi Arabia and Director, Law and Regulatory Affairs, Pakistan Telecommunication Authority. Mian Nazir is an accomplished and renowned shariah lawyer in the field of Islamic banking and finance. In his current role, Mian is involved in the structuring and documentation of various shariah compliant financial products and transactions.
		Mohammed Donia CEO, Ideal Ratings Mr. Donia is the CEO and co-founder of Ideal Ratings, the market leader in screening Islamic equities. Prior to establishing Ideal Ratings, he was co-founder of Cogency software where he helped to develop the business into a leading IT solution provider for some of the world’s largest hedge funds and funds of funds. Prior to joining Cogency Software, Mr. Donia was Vice President of Applications at Ten Fold Corporation, held several management positions at PepsiCo, and started his career at Proctor and Gamble.
		Simon Eedle Global Head Islamic Banking & Regional Head of Fixed Income Markets, Credit Agricole - CIB Simon has worked in the financial markets for 26 years, the last 20 of which have been with the Credit Agricole Group. Before taking up his existing position at the beginning of 2007, he had gained a wealth of experience in the capital markets arena with a number of high profile assignments internationally for the group. This included head of markets in London and New York, and Global head of FX. At the beginning of 2007, he took on the role of building the groups Islamic banking business on a worldwide basis, with a mandate across all business lines in Calyon including corporate banking, structured finance, capital markets and private banking. In addition, he is responsible for the bank’s Fixed Income business in Middle East and North Africa. He is currently Deputy Chairman of Islamic Internal Financial Markets (IIFM) and chairs the executive committee. IIFM is committed to developing standards of structure and documentation for capital markets products, for the overall development and benefit of the Islamic market place as a whole. Prior to joining the banking industry in 1984, Simon trained as a management accountant.
		Adnan Haider Head of Fixed Income and Equities, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank Adnan is with Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank where he looks after the Fixed Income, Equities and Structuring businesses. Adnan has 15+ years of capital markets, investment banking and management consulting experiences, having worked in UAE, UK and Canada. Most recently, Adnan was a co-founder of a Dubai based investment bank where he co-headed the Capital Markets division, and previously worked at a bulge bracket investment bank in London on the credit trading desk and the leveraged finance desk. Prior to banking, Adnan worked in strategy consulting and private equity. Adnan holds an MBA from London Business School and a Masters of Accounting from University of Waterloo, and is a qualified CA.
		Khalid Howladar Senior Credit Officer for Asset Backed and Sukuk Finance, Moody’s Middle East Khalid Howladar has worked on every publicly rated securitisation in the region and is a leading figure in the industry. Based in the DIFC, he has extensive experience of both structured products and MENA markets having specialised in these areas since he joined Moody’s in London in 2001. Prior experience includes four years at Credit Suisse as an analyst in the emerging markets fixed income group.
		Mufaddal Idris Khumri SVP & Head, Islamic Banking, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank Mufaddal was instrumental in setting up ADCB Meethaq, the Islamic Banking Division of Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank. The Islamic Banking Division in ADCB caters to Retail, Wealth Management, SME, Corporate Banking and Treasury requirements. He has been with ADCB since 2004 and was the founding member of the Islamic Banking initiative. Additionally he also heads, Abu Dhabi Commercial Islamic Finance PSC, a fully owned Islamic subsidiary of ADCB, with a capital of AED 500 Million. Mufaddal has worked extensively on multiple facets of Islamic Banking which include product development (Retail/Corporate/Treasury and Investments), Shari’ah governance, project management, legal documentation, training, branding and marketing and sales and distribution. Mufaddal started his banking career in 1997 with ICICI Bank in India and was with them till 2004. He was a part of the Middle East team which set up operations in GCC for ICICI Bank. During his career he has worked in Branch Banking, Retail and HNW Banking, Corporate Banking, Investments, Cross Border Remittances, core banking system implementation and International Banking. He has a proven track record in a managerial role in leading a team of professionals in a multi-cultural environment. He has significant experience in strategic planning and execution, leadership of cross-functional teams in matrix organization structures and management of external service providers and strategic alliances. Mufaddal writes occasional papers on Islamic Banking and has been published by leading magazines. He is a regular speaker at Islamic conferences and seminars. He is a Member of the Islamic Finance Advisory Council (IFAC) at the Dubai International Financial Centre and a member of the Islamic Finance Corporate Governance Task Force committee at Hawakamah at Dubai International Financial Centre.
		Moinuddin Malim CEO, Mashreq Al Islami Moin is CEO of Mashreq Al-Islami, the Islamic banking arm of Mashreq Bank. Previously, he established the Asset Management and Capital Markets unit at Dubai Islamic Bank and has lead arranged some of the highest profile sukuk in history (including the first ever US$1 billion Sukuk Al Ijara, Department of Civil Aviation, Dubai) and created a full spectrum of shariah compliant investment products. Prior to joining DIB, he was a Senior Partner at The International Investor and headed the International Finance Division at Al Tawfeek Company for Investment Funds (Dallah Al Baraka Group).
		Haroon Ahmad Cofounder and CIO, CapInvest Haroon has recently set up an investment advisory and placement firm, CapInvest, providing tailored investment solutions to clients in the MENA region, whilst operating within an open architecture framework. CapInvest will be based in UAE operating under the DFSA regulatory environment, inshaAllah. We have acknowledged the need to have core strategic partners and we are pleased to be backed by one of the most respected Asian financial institutions, United Overseas Bank (UOB). Haroon was previously the Head of Business Development at Emirates NBD Asset Management Limited. He has fourteen years of experience in the financial services industry specialising in Islamic finance. Prior to joining Emirates NBD Asset Management Limited, he spent seven years with HSBC in various roles including Head of Strategy for HSBC Amanah in Dubai and VP Investment Product Development in New York.
		Aladin Al Khatib EVP Treasury Banking Group, Al Hilal Bank Aladin joined Al Hilal Bank in May 2008, a month before the official inauguration of the Bank, bringing over 16 years experience in the Treasury & Investment Banking business and sound Regional and International exposure across different types of markets, products, asset classes, structuring and hedging techniques. He was previously with Arab Bank in their London office as Head of Business Development in the Global Treasury business. He started his career with Bank of Jordan, Amman, in the dealing room and moved on to Arab Bank holding several senior positions in Treasury & Capital Markets. Aladin has extensive knowledge in conventional and Islamic treasury products and policies. Aladin holds an MBA in Accounting and is a Certified Investment Manager from SSI, London. Aladin is the only executive member of the Arabic traders in the International Islamic ISDA committee in London. He is also a senior executive board member at the International Committee for Professionalism of the Financial Markets (CFP-ACI).
		Tanya Dernaika Strategic Planning Director, Memac Ogilvy Group Born in Lebanon, Tanya has spent her entire 16 year career with the Memac Ogilvy group in London and Dubai. Throughout this time, her passion has been to represent the voice of the Arab Muslim consumer in the Middle East and to help brands engage with Arabs in inspiring and effective ways. Having spearheaded the regional launch of the first strategic planning department in the Middle East in 1997, and based in the region ever since, she provides a deep upstream perspective to brand building strategies for Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Bahrain, Egypt and Lebanon. She has recently been focused on launching Ogilvy Noor, the world’s first bespoke Islamic branding practice.
		Suhail Shaikh Director - Quantitative Research, YouGov Siraj Sunil has 16 years global market research experience (Quantitative and Qualitative) with 14 plus years in the region. He was previously General Manager of a regional market research agency based in the UAE. His industry experience spans FMCG, automotive, banking, social research, healthcare, and hospitality. He has a Bachelor of Engineering and Post Graduation Diploma in Business Management from India.
		Jamie Waskey Associate Director - Qualitative Research,  YouGov Siraj Jamie has over 5 years market research experience and almost 3 years in the region. She previously worked at Delta Air Lines in customer insights and analytics division, and has worked in market research for the US Department of Commerce in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Jamie is experienced in quantitative and qualitative research across a variety of sectors (i.e., travel, tourism, leisure & hospitality, FMCG, corporate social responsibility, environment). She has a Bachelor of Science in International Affairs & Modern Language from the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, GA.
		Paul McNamara CEO and Editorial Director, Yasaar Media Paul is one of the most respected Islamic finance journalists and analysts in the world and is the co-founder of Yasaar Media (www.yasaarmedia.com) based in Dubai. Yasaar Media is a dedicated Islamic finance research and media company and is unique in world of Islamic finance media in that it produces in-depth research studies on specific sector niches within the Islamic finance domain. Prior to that Paul conceptualised, launched and edited Islamic Business & Finance Magazine and Sukuk Insider in 2004, also in Dubai. Before that Paul worked in London with Euromoney Institutional Investor where he published books on a range of subjects - including Islamic finance: Innovation and Growth by Karim & Archer. Paul also launched and published Islamic Finance Weekly in 2002, one of the world’s first serious Islamic finance publications. Prior to that Paul was publisher of Asia-Inc magazine in Singapore for two years and before that he worked in Australia for eight years at Fairfax Business Publishing. Prior to that he worked for the Financial Times in London for nine years. Paul has just published Brilliant Marketing for Islamic Banks through Business Book Club (www.businessbookclub.com) – his fifth book in recent years. Paul has a BA Honours degree in Politics, Philosophy and Economics from Christ Church, Oxford.
		Muhammed Ikram Thowfeek CFO, Barwa Bank Mr. Thowfeek, a Chartered Accountant by profession and an Islamic Banker by practice. To date, he has gained a wealth of knowledge and experience over the last two decades, through his diverse positions held in various organisations, in auditing, management consultancy, financial control, strategic planning & budgeting, Islamic banking & finance, retail, commercial and investment banking, Islamic capital and global Sukuk (Islamic Bonds) markets, training and career development. He is a start-up specialist and has set up a number of IFIs in the region, both fully fledged Islamic Banks and Independent branches of conventional banks, from scratch. He is an Associate Member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants (ACA) - Sri Lanka, a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (FCMA) - UK, a Member of the Institute of Financial Consultants (MIFC) - USA, a Member of the Chartered Institute of Securities and Investments (CISI) – UK and a Certified Islamic Banker (CeIB) – India.
		Sohail Zubairi CEO, Dar Al Sharia Sohail Zubairi is the CEO of Dar Al Sharia Legal & Financial Consultancy, a subsidiary of Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB) launched in July 2008). He previously served as SVP and Head of Sharia Structuring, Documentation and Product Development at Dubai Islamic Bank and has over twenty years experience of large corporate finance, risk management and syndication in the GCC and has been an active proponent of Islamic Finance since 2001. Sohail started his banking career with MCB Bank in Karachi in 1975.