Abdulkader Thomas is the president and CEO of SHAPE for Economic Consulting doing business as SHAPE Knowledge Services, Kuwait. Abdulkader has over 30 years of diversified financial services experience. Abdulkader’s background includes capital markets, real estate finance and trade finance. He has served in various international banks and dealt with the regulatory approval for Islamic products in different countries, and consults for and trains financial institutions, regulators, and businesses about Islamic finance.

Along with his team at SHAPE, Abdulkader works on projects that include launching de novo Islamic banks and Islamic banking windows, funds, Sukuk, regulations, policies and procedures including Shariah policies, Shariah compliance, product development and structuring.

Abdulkader is a member of the International Advisory Committee for Islamic Capital Markets at the Securities Commission of Malaysia.

A graduate of the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy in international trade, Abdulkader earned a Bachelor of Arts degree (Honors) in Arabic and Islamic studies from the University of Chicago.

Abdulkader is a frequent speaker on Islamic financial and banking matters. He has co-authored or edited several works in the field including ‘Structuring Islamic Financial Transactions’ with Stella Cox and Bryan Kraty (London: Euromoney, 2005), among others.

Abou Jallow is the General Manager of the Operations Department with overall responsibility for implementing the ITFC trade finance portfolio (Disbursements and Receivables). He joined the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) in 2004 and transferred to ITFC at its inception in January 2008. Prior to IDB, he held several positions in commercial banking and the private sector and his last position was that of Head of Corporate Sales at Standard Chartered Bank.

Abou Jallow obtained his Bachelor’s degree in Economics with Honours from the International Islamic University, Malaysia, in 1988 and his MBA in Accounting and Finance from the Maastricht School of Management in the Netherlands in 1993. In addition, he is a Certified Credit Professional by the Standard Chartered Bank.

Ahsan Ali is responsible for the global Islamic corporate and institutional banking business at Standard Chartered Bank (SCB). Since joining SCB in March 2004, he has built this business from inception and has led several award-winning and industry-defining transactions. Ahsan has over 24 years of experience in the financial services industry, of which the last 14 have been in Islamic banking.

Ahsan holds an MBA from the Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta and a degree in mechanical engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, in addition to a CFA [chartered financial analyst] designation.

Amir Firdaus has been at the forefront of the growth in Islamic finance in the UK. The chartered accountant’s 20-year career has been across high-profile roles for legacy-free challenger banks, with an expanding reach in the personal, SME and intermediary banking sectors with a focus on business models and strategy. Amir has worked for Aldermore, Al Rayan and Sainsbury’s Bank. Amir has structured numerous Sukuk transactions and led the residential mortgage-backed security issuance at Al Rayan Bank. While the head of asset and liability management at Aldermore Bank, he facilitated its balance sheet growth from GBP150 million (US$177.37 million) to GBP4.5 billion (US$5.32 billion).

Andy Thomson is the head of real estate at the Bank of London & The Middle East, a UK-headquartered Shariah compliant bank, which also has an office in Dubai and a new office opening soon in Riyadh.  He leads a team of 20 property bankers and his role covers three areas:

• Real estate finance — focused on origination of development and investment facilities for commercial and residential properties in the UK.
• Real estate investment — focused on buying real estate assets in the UK and selling down equity to ultra-high-net-worth individuals in the GCC.
• Mortgages — provides high value buy-to-let and holiday home non-regulated mortgages to clients from the GCC.

Andy is an experienced real estate finance professional with a 30-plus-year track record in commercial banking including roles in origination, portfolio management, credit, debt advisory, special servicing and restructuring.

Areeb Siddiqui is the founder and CEO of Kestrl, the No 1 software helping Islamic banks to digitally transform and offer personalized experiences to their customers. Before launching Kestrl, Areeb was a management consultant at Deloitte and PwC, specializing in developing fintech strategies for banks and wealth managers. Areeb holds an MBA from the University of Cambridge and a Bachelor of Science degree in physics from University College London.

Craig Reeves is the founder of Prestige Group established in 2007 which consists of three main businesses focusing on fund management, small business lending and renewable energy infrastructure. He has raised more than US$2.5 billion in fund assets and US$700 million in wholesale debt. Craig has over 27 years of experience in financial services as a fund manager, trader and investor of alternative investments, hedge funds, capital markets and real estate. Craig graduated from Huddersfield University with a business degree and from University of Greenwich with a finance diploma. He also studied at the New York Institute of Finance.

Passionate about enabling investors to make uncorrelated, positive returns and a social impact through renewable energy investment and small business finance, Prestige’s culture of innovation allows it to offer high-quality alternative investment products that make it the true pioneer in its chosen markets.

Hari Bhambra has over 20 years of experience in financial services regulation, having been part of development teams at two financial regulators: Financial Services Authority in the UK and Dubai Financial Services Authority in Dubai. Hari’s early career began at Goldman Sachs International, London. She has authored numerous publications on regulation and has delivered training for the CASS MBA and Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment. She holds a Master of Laws degree, the Diploma in Legal Practice and a certificate in blockchain and artificial intelligence. Hari has advised regulators on the systemic implications of the integration of Islamic finance into secular economies. Hari oversees Apex’s Global Compliance solutions line following the acquisition of Praesidium, a risk and regulatory advisory practice that provides compliance and anti-money laundering services to global financial services institutions.

Hassan Daher (PhD, CFA) is the founder and CEO of Qardus, the UK’s first ethical and Shariah compliant business financing platform. He has 15-plus years of experience in finance and Islamic finance obtained while at Deloitte Corporate Finance based in Dubai in the UAE and as an independent consultant. Hassan has an in-depth understanding of the financial technology space on both a technical and commercial level. While building Qardus, he was admitted into two of the top tier European accelerator programs, Entrepreneur First and Founders Factory based in London. Hassan is a graduate of Manchester University and is also a CFA charterholder and holds a PhD in Islamic finance. He has authored several articles in top tier banking and finance journals and has presented his findings in numerous conferences.

Dr Hurriyah El Islamy is currently serving as an executive board member of Badan Pengelola Keuangan Haji, an independent sovereign agency empowered by law to manage the Indonesian Hajj pilgrim funds. She was named as one of the most active Islamic finance activists by Bank Indonesia and has global experience in Islamic finance having served as the director for CIMB Group responsible for all Islamic businesses of the group. She was also the director of Capinnova Investment Bank, an Islamic investment arm of the Bank of Bahrain and Kuwait after she served Kuwait Finance House Bahrain leading the Compliance and Anti-Money Laundering Department there while (also) serving as the legal counsel.

Dr Hurriyah remains active in the Islamic finance industry as she is the advisor in Islamic finance to the Astana International Finance Centre, a board member and strategic advisor to Islamic Fintech Alliance and is also listed as an IMF expert in Islamic finance and capital markets. She has a Bachelor of Laws (Hons) degree, a Master’s degree in corporate law and a PhD.

Michael Rainey advises lenders and borrowers with regards to their financing needs, focusing on project finance in the GCC, financing and restructuring in Saudi Arabia and the UAE as well as real estate finance and investment in the GCC and Europe. Michael advises on transactions using both conventional and Shariah compliant financing. He is ranked as a ‘leading individual’ for his Islamic finance expertise by both The Legal 500 UK and The Legal 500 EMEA.

Mike Tirman is a partner in Ice Miller’s Real Estate Group and advises and represents clients in all areas of real estate law, including acquisitions and dispositions, financing (including various forms of Shariah compliant financing), ground leasing, development, land use and zoning, entity structuring and joint ventures.

Some of Mike’s representative transactions include, among others, r
epresenting a buyer in a US$195 million Shariah compliant acquisition and CMBS financing of a portfolio of 30 industrial properties, representing a landlord in a US$104 million refinance of a portfolio of four industrial properties in New Jersey encumbered by ground leases and representing a REIT in a US$30 million acquisition of a parking garage and execution of a reverse 1031 exchange.

Mike is licensed to practice law in Illinois and Indiana.

Moad Giebaly has experience of advising on a range of corporate work including domestic and international mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, commercial contracts and general corporate advice. Moad has a particular focus on the real estate sector which ranges from advising developers and local authorities to advising on inward investment (from the MENA and ASEAN regions) in the real estate and hotels and leisure sectors, including those involving the corporate structuring of Shariah compliant acquisitions of shares and assets and establishing Shariah compliant offshore funds.

Dr Mohamed Damak is a senior director of financial services at S&P Global Ratings. He covers financial institutions in the Middle East and Africa. Dr Mohamed is also the global head of Islamic finance at S&P Global Ratings, leading a global team of Islamic finance analysts.

Before rejoining S&P Global Ratings, Dr Mohamed worked as a principal credit risk officer for the African Development Bank in Tunis. From 2006 to 2010, he worked for S&P Global Ratings covering conventional and Islamic financial institutions in the Middle East and North Africa region.

Dr Mohamed holds a PhD in finance and a Master’s degree in money, banking and finance from University of Paris 2, Pantheon Assas and a Master’s degree in financial institutions management from Ecole Supérieure de Commerce de Tunis.

Mohammed Paracha is a banking and finance lawyer based in Dubai. He is the head of the Middle East, as well as the head of Norton Rose Fulbright’s Islamic finance practice for the Middle East and Africa.

Mohammed has been active in the Middle East for nearly 20 years, having worked in Norton Rose Fulbright’s London and Bahrain offices before moving to Dubai in 2011. He became the head of Norton Rose Fulbright’s Middle East practice in January 2021.

Mohammed’s practice focuses on all types of Islamic finance covering a wide range of asset types, investment classes and industrial sectors. With a background in asset and project finance, Mohammed advises on Shariah compliant asset finance, trade finance, real estate finance and project financings. He also advises on the structuring of Islamically acceptable investment funds and has advised on the establishment of new Islamic financial institutions in various countries. Mohammed has strong relationships with many of the internationally renowned Shariah scholars and is a regular speaker at conferences and seminars on Islamic finance topics.

Mohammed is recommended as a leader in his field by Chambers and Partners, The Legal 500, Acritas and IFLR.

Dr Natalie Schoon is a results-driven professional with a varied background across the financial industry including investment banking, treasury change management, capital adequacy, wholesale banknote operations, regulatory change (Basel Accords), risk management, compliance and Islamic finance. She has lived and worked in Europe, the Middle East, Asia and Eastern Africa and works for both small and large international organizations globally.

Among others, Natalie was responsible for the design, implementation, management and succession planning for the Islamic financial infrastructure for the Agricultural Development Fund (a USAID-funded program in Afghanistan) and has been instrumental in the design of a stand-alone solution for access to finance for women (Zahra).

Natalie has managed training in credit risk, capital structure, statistics, economics and financial markets for a wide range of organizations globally. Natalie works closely with the Chartered Institute for Securities and Investment in the UK on regulatory workbooks for, among others, Cyprus, Dubai, Qatar, Palestine and Kuwait. She has worked on the minimum capital standards for mortgage lending in Pakistan to promote the primary and secondary mortgage market (The World Bank) and successfully designed the new rules and regulations for trading in Sukuk and derivatives as well as short-selling for the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission.

Nitish Bhojnagarwala is a vice-president–senior credit officer with Moody’s Financial Institutions Group. Based in Dubai, Nitish covers a portfolio of large conventional as well as Islamic financial institutions in the Middle East, Africa and Turkey.

Nitish joined Moody’s in 2011, and has led Sukuk roundtables and conducted workshops on banking and Islamic finance at various conferences in the Middle East, Europe and Asia. Nitish has also authored several research pieces, with a focus on regional banking, credit issues and issuer-in-depths for conventional as well as Islamic banks.

Prior to joining Moody’s, Nitish spent five years at Tamweel in the Treasury. He has also worked for KPMG in the UAE, where he covered financial institutions. Nitish holds an MBA from S P Jain Institute of Management & Research, with a major in finance (investment banking).

Richard Thomas (OBE, FCSI) is the managing director of Sustainable Economy Limited (SEL), his own think tank and consultancy based on his experiences in Islamic finance and economics. His most recent research was on the impact Gharar and Jehala on sustainable business planning, risk management and the role of artificial intelligence and big data. Richard has over 40 years of experience working in direct Shariah compliant banking and investment management and his current work is related to Shariah compliant infrastructure investment.

Prior to SEL, Richard was the chairman and CEO of Gatehouse Bank. In 2010, Richard received his Order of the British Empire (OBE) in recognition of his contributions to the UK Islamic financial services industry. Richard’s principal employers prior to Gatehouse Bank were Saudi International Bank, United Bank of Kuwait, Arab Banking Corporation and Brown Shipley Merchant Bank.

Richard is a fellow of the Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment (CISI) and he has been an INCIEF governing council member and a board member of the Financial Services Professional Board (Malaysia).

Safdar Alam is CEO of Maydan Capital, a private investment platform for Shariah compliant venture financing. A specialist in Islamic finance for over two decades, Safdar has established and led the Islamic banking teams/businesses at some of the largest banks in the world (UBS, Credit Agricole, JPMorgan). He is well known in the global industry, and played a key role in several landmark transactions and ground-breaking developments in the industry. His experience has been gained working in the City in London (over 15 years), and being based for six years in Bahrain.

Dr Scott Levy is the managing director of Al Waseelah, an award-winning Shariah compliant Sukuk issuance platform which includes structuring, arranging, originating and listing Sukuk. Al Waseelah was established in 2017 as a tech-savvy and cost-effective way to create Shariah compliant financial instruments, democratizing the process for issuers and investors.

Al Waseelah provides flexible and quick-to-market solutions for green and sustainable businesses, financial institutions, asset managers, corporations and family offices. The company’s focus is on Islamic liquidity management and offering a diverse range of investment opportunities, and is committed to thought leadership in the sector through IFN and International Islamic Financial Market.

Al Waseelah is leading the way in integrating ESG/SDG principles into Sukuk, and offers Shariah compliant products like XTCC, which is the world’s first exchange-traded high-quality carbon credit investment sourced from verified renewable energy.

Dr Scott is a liveryman of the Worshipful Company of International Bankers and the Worshipful Company of Musicians, a member of Lincoln’s Inn and a senior member of Wolfson College, Cambridge.

Shrey Kohli is responsible for London Stock Exchange (LSE)’s debt and structured finance markets and is part of the primary markets management committee. He was previously the head of strategic development for LSE. He is the co-chair of the City of London’s India–UK Capital Markets Working Group, chair of the Green and Sustainable Sukuk Taskforce under the High-Level Working Group on Islamic Finance established at COP26 and was a member of the Advisory Council to the Green & Social Bond Principles Executive Committee from 2020 to 2022. During 2018–19, Shrey was seconded to the International Finance Corporation as the financial officer in treasury and syndications. He has previously worked at McKinsey and Co, the strategy consultancy. He holds a Master of Science degree in finance and economics from the London School of Economics and a Bachelor of Science (Hons) degree in physics from St Stephen’s College, University of Delhi.

Sohail Ali is a litigation and arbitration lawyer, with over 15 years of experience advising a wide range of corporate clients on high-value, premium banking and commercial disputes. Sohail has particular expertise in advising on complex, cross-border disputes. He also leads the firm’s global Islamic finance disputes practice. Sohail has done a number of client secondments including at Goldman Sachs, Barclays Capital, Mars and Lloyds Banking Group and he understands the importance of providing clear, commercial and strategic advice to his clients.

Stella Cox CBE has worked within the Islamic financial marketplace for more than 30 years. Since 1998, she has been the managing director of DDCAP Group, which is a leading provider of capital market intermediary services and related technology solutions to Islamic financial market institutions.

Since 2015, Stella has been a member of the Board of Trustees of the RFI Foundation, which acts as a catalyst to link together responsible and Islamic finance, and she represents DDCAP within the Islamic finance and the UN Sustainable Development Goals Taskforce, the inaugural meeting of which took place in July 2020, convened by the Islamic Finance Council UK in partnership with the UK government. Since 2014, Stella has been the chair of the Islamic Finance Market Advisory Group formed by TheCityUK and she represents DDCAP on the UK Islamic Fintech Panel.

In June 2016, Stella was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE). Stella was honored for her services to the economy and, specifically, as a champion for the development of Islamic finance in the UK. Stella was ranked No 1 among the ‘100 Most Influential Women in Islamic Finance’ in the ISFIRE ‘WOMANi 2018′ Report and was appointed patron-in-chief of WOMANi in April 2019. In July 2019, Stella became a Freeman of the City of London.

Dr Usman Chaudry joined Gatehouse Bank as the chief risk officer in January 2018. Prior to this, he was the risk director at Tandem, a fintech bank, responsible for risk management and compliance; and part of the management team that completed the acquisition of Harrods Bank. Prior to Tandem, Dr Usman held the role of global head of risk governance and policy at Standard Chartered, responsible for risk oversight across some 80 countries. Prior to this, he was at KPMG advising UK banks on financial services risk and regulatory matters, including financial services corporate transactions; and at Barclays and GE Capital helping to set up greenfield operations and risk management in retail and commercial businesses across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. He started his career at FICO, where he used advanced analytics and artificial intelligence to help banks drive better decisions. Usman holds a PhD in computational chemistry from the University of Manchester.

Vineeta Tan is Managing Editor and Director of REDmoney Group, one of the world’s longest-running Islamic finance media houses. Vineeta oversees REDmoney Group’s stable of products including Islamic Finance news, IFN Fintech and Islamic Sustainable Finance & Investment. With over a decade of experience in the journalism and publishing industry, Vineeta specializes in ethical and Islamic finance as well as fintech reporting and analysis covering regions including the Middle East, Asia, Africa and Europe. As managing editor of IFN, Vineeta leads the editorial direction and business development of IFN and its sister publications in addition to authoring reports, producing podcasts and conducting video interviews. She has interviewed senior industry players, key stakeholders and senior dignitaries including the finance/economic ministers of the Ivory Coast, Sri Lanka and the Maldives. Vineeta is a regular on the international conference circuit as both a moderator and speaker. She has an MBA and is trained in Journalism and Sociology. Vineeta also holds the Islamic Finance Qualification awarded by the Chartered Institute for Securities & Investments, UK.

Youness Abidou is a qualified accountant who trained with EY in the Real Estate and Hospitality Division and has maintained his focus on real estate throughout his career. Youness has nearly two decades of experience in real estate and has worked on projects at all levels, from portfolios of several billion to structuring transactions for a first-time real estate investor. A highlight of Youness’s career was when he set up an advisory business assisting a number of ex-clients, helping them to navigate their way through the credit crunch. Later, Youness joined Gatehouse Bank and then Bank ABC, where his knowledge of Islamic finance and his experience in real estate finally aligned.

With a career that spans more than 28 years, predominantly in corporate advisory, and with work experience in six countries throughout Asia, the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent, Zalina has been a strong advocate for sustainable finance in the last eight years. Zalina’s primary area of strength is market development through positioning and creating opportunities for new markets and product innovation. In her last role with the Securities Commission Malaysia, she was pivotal in the creation of capacity development programs that looked at building the financial sector’s technical expertise and experience in sustainable finance. A major focus was also to support the industry and the regulator’s effort to build recognition of Islamic finance as responsible finance. Zalina holds an MBA in finance from CASS Business School of the UK and is a fellow of the Association of Certified Chartered Accountants.

Craig Reeves is the founder of Prestige Group established in 2007 which consists of three main businesses focusing on fund management, small business lending and renewable energy infrastructure. He has raised more than US$2.5 billion in fund assets and US$700 million in wholesale debt. Craig has over 27 years of experience in financial services as a fund manager, trader and investor of alternative investments, hedge funds, capital markets and real estate. Craig graduated from Huddersfield University with a business degree and from University of Greenwich with a finance diploma. He also studied at the New York Institute of Finance.

Passionate about enabling investors to make uncorrelated, positive returns and a social impact through renewable energy investment and small business finance, Prestige’s culture of innovation allows it to offer high-quality alternative investment products that make it the true pioneer in its chosen markets.

Faizal Karbani is a qualified chartered accountant and spent the first decade of his career working with PwC and GlaxoSmithKline. In 2005, he moved into the Islamic finance industry, specializing in providing Shariah compliant independent financial advice to individuals and corporations. In 2009, he founded Simply Ethical with a vision to provide authentic and best-in-class ethical and Shariah compliant investment solutions and other financial products in the market.

Faizal has been at the forefront of a number of innovations in the Islamic finance industry over the last decade. These include a Shariah compliant EIS fund investing into renewable energy, a Shariah compliant home insurance product, the first Shariah compliant robo-advsisory service in the UK, the provision of a Shariah compliant discretionary investment management service providing bespoke portfolios that invest in direct equities and a Shariah compliant SEIS Science and Innovation Fund.

Faizal is also an approved trainer for the Islamic Finance Qualification and was the author of ‘Mastering Islamic Finance’ published in 2015. He is committed to the development of the Islamic finance industry and is a regular speaker on Islamic finance-related topics.

Richard Thomas (OBE, FCSI) is the managing director of Sustainable Economy Limited (SEL), his own think tank and consultancy based on his experiences in Islamic finance and economics. His most recent research was on the impact Gharar and Jehala on sustainable business planning, risk management and the role of artificial intelligence and big data. Richard has over 40 years of experience working in direct Shariah compliant banking and investment management and his current work is related to Shariah compliant infrastructure investment.

Prior to SEL, Richard was the chairman and CEO of Gatehouse Bank. In 2010, Richard received his Order of the British Empire (OBE) in recognition of his contributions to the UK Islamic financial services industry. Richard’s principal employers prior to Gatehouse Bank were Saudi International Bank, United Bank of Kuwait, Arab Banking Corporation and Brown Shipley Merchant Bank.

Richard is a fellow of the Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment (CISI) and he has been an INCIEF governing council member and a board member of the Financial Services Professional Board (Malaysia).

Dr Scott Levy is the managing director of Al Waseelah, an award-winning Shariah compliant Sukuk issuance platform which includes structuring, arranging, originating and listing Sukuk. Al Waseelah was established in 2017 as a tech-savvy and cost-effective way to create Shariah compliant financial instruments, democratizing the process for issuers and investors.

Al Waseelah provides flexible and quick-to-market solutions for green and sustainable businesses, financial institutions, asset managers, corporations and family offices. The company’s focus is on Islamic liquidity management and offering a diverse range of investment opportunities, and is committed to thought leadership in the sector through IFN and International Islamic Financial Market.

Al Waseelah is leading the way in integrating ESG/SDG principles into Sukuk, and offers Shariah compliant products like XTCC, which is the world’s first exchange-traded high-quality carbon credit investment sourced from verified renewable energy.

Dr Scott is a liveryman of the Worshipful Company of International Bankers and the Worshipful Company of Musicians, a member of Lincoln’s Inn and a senior member of Wolfson College, Cambridge.

Umer Suleman started his career as an auditor at EY before moving to HSBC where he held a variety of roles, among which was as the head of risk for GLCM Digital and head of business risk for the Middle East.

Additionally, Umer has been actively involved in Islamic finance for the last decade, working with some of the most notable UK scholars on Shariah structuring and product validation. Umer currently is the group head of risk for Wahed globally where he brings together his risk and Islamic finance expertise.

Umer also sits on the board of the Islamic Finance Council UK or UKIFC, is an advisor for the finance arm of the Islamic Council of Europe and is the co-founder of the National Waqf Fund. Umer has also been an advisor for a number of other ethical and Islamic fintech start-ups.

Umer was recognized for his work in 2016 as “one to watch” in the city of London by Brummel magazine for not only his work in Islamic finance but also his role as a member of the Steerco for the Cube Network, an umbrella organization for professional corporate Muslim networks.