Abdul-Rahman joined IdealRatings in 2012 and is based in Saudi Arabia. He has extensive experience as a Sales Executive serving the financial sector across the Middle East with a proven track record among top tier institutions. Prior to IdealRatings, Abdul-Rahman was a Sales Manager at Advanced Operations Technology, where he was responsible for identifying and developing new sales solutions and converting them into profitable new businesses. He also worked for KnowledgeNet as Sales Manager where he was responsible for setting sales strategies to penetrate the market, introducing the company Order Management System for the financial sector in the GCC. Abdul-Rahman holds a BSc in Computer Engineering from the Applied Science University in Jordan and an MBA from Manchester Business School.

Ashar Nazim is the Founder and Group CEO of Aion Digital. He is a fintech entrepreneur, investor and board advisor. Formerly, he was a Senior Partner at Ernst & Young and Global Head of Islamic Banking Practice. Ashar is engaged in the buildout of the fintech ecosystem in MENA, advising several Islamic banks on structuring and implementation of fintech solutions. Over the past 20 years, he has helped in the operational buildout of more than 30 Islamic financial institutions and national level programs.

Debopam has extensive experience in finance in the international as well as the Indian domestic markets, having previously worked in India, Singapore, London and Tokyo.

He leads the firm’s India Desk. With in-depth knowledge of the Indian market and regulatory climate, he advises clients on how to successfully implement their Indian-focused transactions.

He advises banks, financial institutions, agents, real estate investment trusts, sponsors, funds and multinational companies across the GCC, South Asia and South East Asia spanning a broad range of industries and asset classes on a wide range of domestic and cross-border transactions with particular focus on corporate finance, real estate finance, project & infrastructure finance, acquisition finance, trade finance, Islamic finance, debt capital markets & structured finance, debt restructuring and regulatory issues. In addition, Debopam regularly assists clients with credit agreement compliance concerns, amendments, waivers and consents on financing documents as well as routine regulatory compliance issues. Besides acting as a counsel for lenders or investors, Debopam has substantial experience in representing borrowers and issuers. He is increasingly sought out for his expertise in the space of ESG and green financing in the GCC and is a regular speaker at conferences and events in this area.

Debopam has been listed in the ALB Super 50 MENA Lawyers 2023 list as one of the most highly recommended private practice lawyers in the region and was mentioned in the IFN Lawyers Directory as a leading Islamic finance practitioner in Oman.

With over 25 years of experience as an International Corporate and Energy Lawyer, Elina Mohamed has worked across various fields including corporate and project financing as well as corporate governance, energy and infrastructure projects.

Elina is currently the Group General Counsel at Bapco Energies, where she is responsible for the oversight and management of Bapco Energies’s legal functions.

Prior to joining the company, Elina held the position of General Counsel at Oman Oil Refineries and Petroleum Industries Company during which she oversaw the legal and compliance function as well as led the legal workstream under the Nakhla Integration Program which launched in December 2018. The program explored value generation across Oman’s oil and gas sectors.

Elina’s expertise extends back to her early career at Shearn Delamore & Co, and later joined MMC, a listed Malaysian utility and infrastructure conglomerate, in which she became the Group Legal Advisor. At MMC, Elina was also the Board’s Secretary and Special Assistant to the Group Chairman.

Elina graduated with a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Leeds and was called to the English Bar and Malaysian Bar. She also holds a Diploma in Shariah Law and Practice from International Islamic University Malaysia.

Dr Gulnar Mulla is a distinguished academician with vast experience in the private sector and the banking industry as well. She is the Head of the Finance Department and a Specialist in Islamic Banking at the University of Technology, Bahrain. She has almost more than 10 years of extensive experience at the university disseminating the knowledge of Shariah and Islamic finance at the graduate and postgraduate levels through teaching, publishing innovative research, examining doctoral dissertations, editing refereed journals, participating in fixing standards on Shariah issues for Islamic financial institutions and counseling Muslim communities.

Dr Gulnar is a dynamic and motivated professional with a proven record of generating and building relationships, managing projects she is assigned to from concept to completion, designing educational strategies and coaching individuals to success. She possesses the required expertise in building cross-functional teams, demonstrating exceptional communication skills and making critical decisions during challenges. Dr Gulnar is an adaptable and transformational leader with an ability to work independently. She is a highly passionate, competitive and creative individual and her goal is to add value to the spaces where she thrives in.

Hakan Ozyon’s role as CEO at Hejaz Financial Services involves setting strategic paths and forming financial alliances. With over 30 years of experience in business, he is known for leading innovative strategies and nurturing talent. He is adept at unlocking potential, promoting growth and increasing revenue. Hakan has deep ties in both the Islamic and broader Australian communities, enhancing business operations and setting corporate goals. Notably, he has spent a decade transforming visions into pioneering Islamic financial services. He is respected globally for his business acumen.

Hammad Hassan has over 25 years of banking experience, spread across corporate and consumer banking, global transaction services and Islamic finance. He has been with Bank ABC Islamic since 2005. Prior to joining Bank ABC, Hassan worked for over 11 years with Citigroup and its affiliate in Saudi Arabia, Samba Financial Group. Hassan joined Citigroup in 1994. In 2005, Hassan joined Bank ABC Islamic as the Head of Coverage. In his current role, he is the Managing Director & CEO of Bank ABC Islamic, Bahrain, as well as the Group Head of Islamic Banking for Bank ABC. Hassan represents Bank ABC Islamic on the Board of the International Islamic Financial Market, Bahrain.

Ijlal Ahmed Alvi has wide-ranging experience in the financial services industry with regional and international financial institutions spanning over three decades.

As CEO of the International Islamic Financial Market (IIFM) for the last 18 years, Ijlal has been devoted to the goal of facilitating unification and harmonization in the Islamic finance industry globally and has overseen the development of universally standardized Shariah compliant financial documentation and product templates in the areas of liquidity management, hedging, trade finance and Sukuk.

In addition to his responsibilities as CEO, Secretary to the Board and spokesperson of IIFM, Ijlal also manages IIFM’s comprehensive standards development process and leads the project specific market consultation exercise, global working groups and legal documentation drafting process and is actively involved in the IIFM Shariah board’s guidance and approval process.

Ijlal also supervises IIFM’s industry awareness seminars, training workshops as well as publication of white papers on specific industry topics and the IIFM’s flagship annual Sukuk Report.

Ijlal is a regular speaker at international conferences and contributes articles in various international and Islamic finance publications.

Dr Jarmo T Kotilaine has held several positions in the financial services sector and in government-related entities in the Gulf region, and currently works at a fund tasked with supporting economic diversification in Bahrain. He studied Economics and Economic History at Oxford, Cambridge and Harvard, and has written widely in the regional media on economic financial market issues.

Lilian Le Falher has 26 years of experience in investment banking. He is an Executive Manager at Kuwait Finance House (KFH), Bahrain, heading treasury, financial institutions and capital markets. As a representative of KFH, he is a Board Member of the International Islamic Financial Market and the Chairman of its Executive Committee. He has contributed to the development of various Shariah compliant structured products and investment schemes.

Prior to joining KFH in 2005, Lilian spent eight years with BNP Paribas in Europe and the Middle East. He ended his duty at BNP Paribas as the Head of Investment Products for the Middle East region, dealing extensively in equity, bonds and structured products.

Lilian Le Falher holds a Master’s degree Banking and Finance from Toulouse Business School (France) and he is a CFA Charter Holder.

Mughees Shaukat is a global Islamic Financial Strategist; Policy Advisor and Senior Manager at AAOIFI, Bahrain; a Fintech Specialist at MIT, US; an Islamic Banking Advisor in Oman; a Strategic Partner at ESGQ for Green Finance in Almaty, Kazakhstan; the pioneer Head of Islamic finance at the College of Banking and Financial Studies (CBFS); and has also worked in the Central Bank of Oman.

Mughees is a thought leader, prolific author, renowned public speaker and prominent contributor in local and global policy and strategic affairs. Under his leadership and global contributions, Mughees made CBFS into a global entity, winning the GIFA award from the president of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. He was also awarded the ‘Fintech Leader of the Year 2020’ by Turkiye and has featured on the front cover of a top international financial magazine as a global personality, strategist and thought leader.

Mughees is a PhD scholar in (Islamic) Economics and Finance, specializing in Entrepreneurship and Policies for Entrepreneurial Ecosystems in the GCC, while holding multiple strategic and advisory positions. He is also the ex-Vice-Chairman of the AAOIFI’s Education Board, Bahrain; a Member of the Blockchain Society, Oman; and an AAOIFI-certified Shariah Advisor and Auditor, among others.

Dr Rizwan Malik is a passionate advocate of Islamic finance with over 12 years of diverse experience in investments, advisory, research, strategy and business development. Since June 2023, he has been the Head of the Islamic Finance Centre at the Bahrain Institute of Banking and Finance.

Prior to his current role, Dr Rizwan was an Executive Director of Standards Implementation and Strategic Developments at AAOIFI, the oldest standard-setting organization within the global Islamic finance industry.

Prior to AAOIFI, Dr Rizwan headed the Strategic Planning and Development Team at the Muscat National Development and Investment Company based – a semi-government institution set up by the sovereign wealth fund of Oman and several government pension funds.

Dr Rizwan holds a Bachelor’s degree from Heriot Watt University, a Master of Science degree in Banking and Finance and a PhD from Kingston University London. His post-doctoral research focused on Islamic capital markets with an exclusive focus on equity investments.

Dr Rizwan has contributed to various conferences and events around the world and has written book chapters and articles in award-winning publications.

Steven Griffiths is CEO & Founder of Absolute Collateral. Steven has over 15 years of experience in US, European and Asian investment banks in sales & trading roles, focusing on fixed income products with global buy and sell-side clients. Absolute Collateral combines this experience of trading, global clients and technology and focuses on development of the MENA tradable markets via a repo trading platform for conventional, Islamic and global clients in local and international currency assets.

With over 25 years of experience as an International Corporate and Energy Lawyer, Elina Mohamed has worked across various fields including corporate and project financing as well as corporate governance, energy and infrastructure projects.

Elina is currently the Group General Counsel at Bapco Energies, where she is responsible for the oversight and management of Bapco Energies’s legal functions.

Prior to joining the company, Elina held the position of General Counsel at Oman Oil Refineries and Petroleum Industries Company during which she oversaw the legal and compliance function as well as led the legal workstream under the Nakhla Integration Program which launched in December 2018. The program explored value generation across Oman’s oil and gas sectors.

Elina’s expertise extends back to her early career at Shearn Delamore & Co, and later joined MMC, a listed Malaysian utility and infrastructure conglomerate, in which she became the Group Legal Advisor. At MMC, Elina was also the Board’s Secretary and Special Assistant to the Group Chairman.

Elina graduated with a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Leeds and was called to the English Bar and Malaysian Bar. She also holds a Diploma in Shariah Law and Practice from International Islamic University Malaysia.

Dr Gulnar Mulla is a distinguished academician with vast experience in the private sector and the banking industry as well. She is the Head of the Finance Department and a Specialist in Islamic Banking at the University of Technology, Bahrain. She has almost more than 10 years of extensive experience at the university disseminating the knowledge of Shariah and Islamic finance at the graduate and postgraduate levels through teaching, publishing innovative research, examining doctoral dissertations, editing refereed journals, participating in fixing standards on Shariah issues for Islamic financial institutions and counseling Muslim communities.

Dr Gulnar is a dynamic and motivated professional with a proven record of generating and building relationships, managing projects she is assigned to from concept to completion, designing educational strategies and coaching individuals to success. She possesses the required expertise in building cross-functional teams, demonstrating exceptional communication skills and making critical decisions during challenges. Dr Gulnar is an adaptable and transformational leader with an ability to work independently. She is a highly passionate, competitive and creative individual and her goal is to add value to the spaces where she thrives in.

Lilian Le Falher has 26 years of experience in investment banking. He is an Executive Manager at Kuwait Finance House (KFH), Bahrain, heading treasury, financial institutions and capital markets. As a representative of KFH, he is a Board Member of the International Islamic Financial Market and the Chairman of its Executive Committee. He has contributed to the development of various Shariah compliant structured products and investment schemes.

Prior to joining KFH in 2005, Lilian spent eight years with BNP Paribas in Europe and the Middle East. He ended his duty at BNP Paribas as the Head of Investment Products for the Middle East region, dealing extensively in equity, bonds and structured products.

Lilian Le Falher holds a Master’s degree Banking and Finance from Toulouse Business School (France) and he is a CFA Charter Holder.

Mughees Shaukat is a global Islamic Financial Strategist; Policy Advisor and Senior Manager at AAOIFI, Bahrain; a Fintech Specialist at MIT, US; an Islamic Banking Advisor in Oman; a Strategic Partner at ESGQ for Green Finance in Almaty, Kazakhstan; the pioneer Head of Islamic finance at the College of Banking and Financial Studies (CBFS); and has also worked in the Central Bank of Oman.

Mughees is a thought leader, prolific author, renowned public speaker and prominent contributor in local and global policy and strategic affairs. Under his leadership and global contributions, Mughees made CBFS into a global entity, winning the GIFA award from the president of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. He was also awarded the ‘Fintech Leader of the Year 2020’ by Turkiye and has featured on the front cover of a top international financial magazine as a global personality, strategist and thought leader.

Mughees is a PhD scholar in (Islamic) Economics and Finance, specializing in Entrepreneurship and Policies for Entrepreneurial Ecosystems in the GCC, while holding multiple strategic and advisory positions. He is also the ex-Vice-Chairman of the AAOIFI’s Education Board, Bahrain; a Member of the Blockchain Society, Oman; and an AAOIFI-certified Shariah Advisor and Auditor, among others.

Rachid Ettaai is a multi-skilled professional with a set of competencies from different disciplines. He is currently The Business Development Manager at the General Council for Islamic Banks and Financial Institutions an international organization headquartered in Bahrain. He is responsible of developing partnerships and collaborations with international organisations to support CIBAFI’s mission. He worked on successful projects and initiatives with organizations such as IsDB, UN, UNEP FI, the World Bank and other stakeholders. He also contributed to the management of a portfolio of research projects related to Islamic Finance with a budget around 500k USD.

Rachid’s areas of interest and expertise cover Business strategy, digital transformation, Islamic finance and sustainability. He is also the head of Strategic Planning at Turritopsis, Strategic Institute of Sustainable Development, headquartered in Brussels, Belgium.

Rachid is a multi-lingual finance professional who holds a Master’s degree in Financial Engineering and Risk Management from the National School of IT (ENSIAS), Rabat, Morocco; and a Bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Computer Sciences from University Cadi Ayyad, Marrakesh, Morocco.

Dr Rizwan Malik is a passionate advocate of Islamic finance with over 12 years of diverse experience in investments, advisory, research, strategy and business development. Since June 2023, he has been the Head of the Islamic Finance Centre at the Bahrain Institute of Banking and Finance.

Prior to his current role, Dr Rizwan was an Executive Director of Standards Implementation and Strategic Developments at AAOIFI, the oldest standard-setting organization within the global Islamic finance industry.

Prior to AAOIFI, Dr Rizwan headed the Strategic Planning and Development Team at the Muscat National Development and Investment Company based – a semi-government institution set up by the sovereign wealth fund of Oman and several government pension funds.

Dr Rizwan holds a Bachelor’s degree from Heriot Watt University, a Master of Science degree in Banking and Finance and a PhD from Kingston University London. His post-doctoral research focused on Islamic capital markets with an exclusive focus on equity investments.

Dr Rizwan has contributed to various conferences and events around the world and has written book chapters and articles in award-winning publications.

Dr Shaher Abbas is the founder and CEO of IFIN, the first-of-its-kind Islamic fintech that is geared to redefine the Islamic finance industry. He is also the co-founder of IFAAS, the leading international consultancy specializing in Islamic finance.

Dr Shaher has over 20 years of experience across the Islamic finance landscape, including banking, Shariah governance, product development, auditing and training with extensive knowledge in the fintech sphere.

Dr Shaher’s technical expertise and ability to innovate have been internationally acclaimed and endorsed as he received the ‘Ethical Finance Innovation Challenge Award’ twice — in 2013 for IFAAS and in 2021 for IFIN — the IsDB Private Sector Forum Competition 2023 award, the MIT Enterprise Forum Arab Startup Competition 2022 award and the Arab Financial Inclusion Innovation Prize 2018.

Dr Shaher holds a PhD in Islamic financial engineering from Durham University, UK and a Master’s degree in Islamic economics, banking and finance from Loughborough University, UK. He is also an AAOIFI-certified Shariah advisor and auditor.