A New Global Growth Story
The global economy faces unique uncertainties. China’s reopening is set to provide a welcome boost to global growth, offsetting weakness in Europe and a lingering recession risk in the US. But China’s post Covid pivot could bring inflationary pressures at exactly the moment the US Federal Reserve and other central banks are bringing them back under control.
Look beyond China-US-Europe centric headlines, however, and you can uncover a major shift in the existing economic order: In a world defined by a 19th century-style battle for resources, more assertive economic statecraft and an eagerness for more resilient and geopolitically neutral trade partners, the economic nexus between the Gulf, India, and Southeast Asia is rising in global importance–and looks set to drive global growth and optimism into the next decade.
In the Gulf, Qatar and its neighbors are capitalizing on the opportunity. The region’s sovereign wealth funds, flush with oil and gas revenue from the energy crisis, are competing to fill the $3 trillion liquidity gap left by Wall Street’s retreat. And with global supply lines rerouting and the epicenter of global growth shifting Eastward, the Gulf is increasing the pace of reforms and opening up to meet the world on its terms.
Against this backdrop, the 3rd Qatar Economic Forum, Powered by Bloomberg, will shine a light on the rising south-to-south economy and the new growth opportunities it presents to the global business community. Promoting both established viewpoints and emerging voices from around the world, the Forum will identify the latest economic trends that will drive us towards a new global growth story.
Arrivals & Registration
Registration Open & Morning Networking
Attendees Invited to Enter the Ballroom
Ballroom Doors Closed
In Conversation With President Kagame
- H.E. Paul Kagame, President of the Republic of Rwanda
- Moderator: Jennifer Zabasajja, Correspondent, Bloomberg Television
Energy Minister Outlook
Some of the world’s most influential energy ministers offer their unique insights into what’s next for global energy supplies and demand.
- H.E. Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, Minister of State for Energy Affairs, State of Qatar; President & CEO, QatarEnergy
- H.R.H. Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman Al-Saud, Minister of Energy, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
- H.E. Hayan Abdul Ghani AlSawad, Deputy Prime Minister; Minister of Oil, Republic of Iraq
- Moderator: Francine Lacqua, Anchor, Bloomberg Television
Networking Break
In Conversation With Prime Minister Orbán
- H.E. Viktor Orbán, Prime Minister of Hungary
- Moderator: John Micklethwait, Editor-in-Chief, Bloomberg
Reengineering Globalization
The global trading system is undergoing tectonic shifts that will reorient international supply chains for decades to come. We get the latest from influential Ministers and find out how they are positioning their economies in a competitive global business landscape.
- H.E. Khalid A. Al-Falih, Minister of Investment, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
- The Rt. Hon. Kemi Badenoch MP, Secretary of State for Business & Trade, The United Kingdom of Great Britain & Northern Ireland
- Moderator: Stephanie Flanders, Head of Economics & Government, Bloomberg
Networking Lunch
Networking Lunch Proudly Sponsored By QNB
Emerging Markets: An Uneven Recovery and Future Growth Story
Fairmont Ballroom 1 (Breakout 1)
Emerging markets were not immune to the global slowdown in 2022 and now, more than ever, sit in a precarious position to secure future growth. Governments and investors are rapidly responding to potential headwinds. The bright spot is that EM markets are expected to see 4% growth compared to a global growth forecast of 1.7% but much work remains to be done. What role can banks, EM governments and sovereign wealth funds play in ensuring the world does not dip back into recession? What sectors and opportunities offer the most promise for long term growth? How do we get equity investors to reinvest gains into local economies?
- Sheikh Ali Alwaleed Al-Thani, CEO, Investment Promotion Agency Qatar (IPA Qatar)
- Kristian Feldborg, CEO & Founder, Vesuvio Labs
- Lena Sene, President and CEO, DCA (Developing Capital for Africa)
- Rizwan Shaikh, Co-Head of Banking, Capital Markets & Advisory, Middle East & Africa, Citi
- Benjamin Wegg-Prosser, Co-Founder and Managing Director, Global Counsel
- Themis Themistocleous, Head Chief Investment Office EMEA, UBS Global Wealth Management
- Patrick Wu, Head of Macro and Co-Head of Trading Asia Pacific & the Middle East, Crédit Agricole Corporate Investment Bank
- Moderator: Ziad Daoud, Chief Emerging Markets Economist, Bloomberg Economics
Global Investment Opportunities in High-Growth Sectors
Proudly Sponsored By Qatar Investment Authority
Fairmont Ballroom 3 (Breakout 2)
In an increasingly globalized economy, identifying and capitalizing on the right investment opportunities has become paramount for investors seeking diversification and long-term growth. This breakout will explore how investors are raising the resilience of their portfolios and navigating complexity to take advantage of opportunities in different geographic markets. It will also delve into investment in the healthcare space, to understand the role investors play and their long-term impact of their capital.
- Mohammed Al-Sowaidi, CIO, Americas, Qatar Investment Authority
- Christian Angermayer, Founder, Apeiron Investment Group
- Christophe Bavière, Co-CEO, Eurazeo
- Tasneem Dohadwala, Founding Partner, Excelestar Ventures
- Dr. Mohamed Adel Ghanem, Head of Healthcare, Qatar Investment Authority
- Patrick Zhong, Founding Managing Partner, M31 Capital
Recalibrating America's Global Role
Next, we'll take up the question of America's role on the global stage. While the US leads the global fight against inflation, the allied response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the effort to keep China from misusing Western technology, its resolve is being tested at home. The US banking system is fragile, its politics are more polarized than ever and isolationism is gaining traction.
- Steven T. Mnuchin, 77th Secretary of the Treasury, The United States of America, Founder & Managing Partner, Liberty Strategic Capital
- Moderator: Erik Schatzker, Editorial Director, Bloomberg New Economy
Creating a Long-Term Investment Strategy
With economic headwinds on the horizon, investors and corporate executives are redefining their investment strategies to achieve long-term value. In this session, the leading names in finance share how they are identifying areas for transformation, innovation and sustainable growth.
- H.E. Mansoor Ebrahim Al-Mahmoud, CEO, Qatar Investment Authority
- Dina Powell McCormick, Global Head of Sustainability & Inclusive Growth; Global Head of Sovereign Business, Goldman Sachs
- Bill Winters, Group Chief Executive, Standard Chartered
- Moderator: John Micklethwait, Editor-in-Chief, Bloomberg
Thriving in Volatility
Sticky inflation, banking failures and recession worries are just some of the factors impacting portfolio strategies, M&A activity and IPOs this year. Yet dealmaking and capital deployment are humming along in the face of those pressures. Our experts discuss the trends, sectors and risks on their radar.
- Ken Moelis, Founder, Chairman & CEO, Moelis & Company
- Rohit Sipahimalani, Chief Investment Officer, Temasek
- Moderator: Haslinda Amin, Host & Editor-at-Large, Qatar Economic Forum, Powered by Bloomberg
Exploring The New Energy Economy
As the world precariously balances energy security, sustainability and affordability, the future energy economy could take many shapes. BloombergNEF highlights the opportunities new technologies will provide in the new energy economy, and the role traditional energy sources can play.
- Address from David Doherty, Head of Oil & Renewable Fuels Research, BloombergNEF
Building a Net Zero Economy
How do we achieve a profitable, equitable transition to a low carbon economy? In this session, we’ll discuss the future of green business, and the quickly evolving landscape of standards, targets, technologies and investments working to achieve net zero.
- Ursula Burns, Founding Partner, Integrum Holdings; Chairwoman, Teneo Holdings
- Bob Moritz, Global Chairman, PwC
- Dato’ Amirul Feisal Wan Zahir, Managing Director, Khazanah Nasional
- Moderator: Jennifer Zabasajja, Correspondent, Bloomberg Television
The New Business of Pop Culture
Peter Chernin is one of the most powerful figures at the intersection of content, technology and business. He’ll debate the future of cinema, the boom in streaming audio and video, immersive sports and gaming experiences, the dawn of web3 and the metaverse, and much more.
- Peter Chernin, Co-Founder & Partner, TCG
- Moderator: Caroline Hyde, Anchor, Bloomberg Television
The Latest from 30,000 Feet
Bellwether aviation executives discuss how they are navigating the post-Covid world, creating a more sustainable industry, and keeping revenues and profits sky high.
- H.E. Akbar Al-Baker, Group CEO, Qatar Airways
- David L. Calhoun, President & CEO, The Boeing Company
- Moderator: Francine Lacqua, Anchor, Bloomberg Television
Close of Qatar Economic Forum Mainstage Day One
The Future of Foreign Direct Investment in Challenging Economic Times
Fairmont Ballroom 1 (Breakout 1)
More than three years after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the global economy saw the recovery peak with global growth of 2.9% in 2022 and is expected to hit 1.7% in 2023. While the economic recovery rebounded robustly coming out of the pandemic, inflation prompted central banks to rapidly raise rates to stem inflation, nudging us closer to a recession. Is the threat of a global slowdown just a blip on the radar or has it fundamentally changed business decision-making and the flow and volume of FDI around the globe? What does the future of foreign direct investment look like in the current economic environment?
- Yousuf Mohamed Al-Jaida, Board Member & CEO, Qatar Financial Centre (QFC)
- Sheikh Mohammed H.F. Al-Thani, CEO, Qatar Free Zones Authority
- Paul Horvath, CEO, Orchard Global
- Aïssata Lam, Director General, Investment Promotion Agency of Mauritania
- H.E. Wamkele Mene, Secretary-General, African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA)
- H.E. Magdalena Rzeczkowska, Minister of Finance, Republic of Poland
- Moderator: Zainab Fattah, Gulf Economy and Government Correspondent, Bloomberg News
Disrupting Healthcare: The Radical Changes Shaping the Biomedical Industry
Fairmont Ballroom 3 (Breakout 2)
The biomedical industry is undergoing a radical transformation, driven by advancements in technology, changes in healthcare policy, and shifting patient preferences. From digital health platforms to personalized medicine and gene therapies, the industry is evolving at an unprecedented pace. How are these disruptive changes shaping the biomedical industry and what impact are they having on healthcare?
- Dr. Thomas Cahill, Founder & Managing Partner, Newpath Partners
- Michael Chambers, Co-Founder & Executive Chairman, Aldevron
- Steve Pagliuca, Senior Advisor, Bain Capital & Co-owner & Managing General Partner, Boston Celtics
- Dr. Stuart Schreiber, Co-Founder, The Broad Institute; Morris Loeb Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University
Qatar Economic Forum Gala Dinner Begins
Gala Dinner Proudly Sponsored By Qatar Investment Authority
In Conversation With Jeff Koons
- Jeff Koons, Artist
- Moderator: Francine Lacqua, Anchor, Bloomberg Television
Performance
Qatar Economic Forum Gala Dinner Concludes
Registration Open & Morning Networking
Uncharted Territory: Rerouting Trade Strategies and Systems
Fairmont Ballroom 1 (Breakout 1)
Russia’s war with Ukraine, the US-China trade war, and the pandemic have fundamentally changed the ways we trade across borders—disrupting supply chains, altering sourcing strategies, and shifting production. This tumultuous time has rocked the global market, and multinational companies have had to adapt to a new world order. What strategies are companies and countries using to manage and mitigate economic and geopolitical risks? How can companies build resilience into their supply chains? What are the longer-term implications of recent experiences for the future of global trade?
- H.E. Sultan Bin Rashid Al-Khater, Undersecretary, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, State of Qatar
- Walter C. Johnsen, Chairman & CEO, Acme United
- Hon. Moses Kiarie Kuria HSC, Cabinet Secretary for Investments, Trade and Industry, Republic of Kenya
- Hon. Dr. Uzziel Ndagijimana, Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Republic of Rwanda
- Jai Shroff, Group CEO, UPL Limited
- Stuart Michael Whiting, Senior Vice President Logistics & Planning, Schneider Electric
- Rita Huang Zhen, Founder & CEO, iMile Delivery
- Moderator: Abeer Abu Omar, Economic and Government Affairs Reporter, Bloomberg News
Game Changer: Transforming Sports for a Digital World
Fairmont Ballroom 3 (Breakout 2)
Functional use of technology in global sports made headway in 2022, transforming the way sports are played and experienced. It has also paved the way for the rapid rise of esports and gaming as entertainment forms that are mobilizing growing levels of investment and global following. This year, technology will continue to bridge physical and digital sports and experiences. Esports, AI, Fan Tokens, cloud gaming, and other digital innovations are introducing new revenue streams as investors partner with sports organizations and game studios to provide immersive sports experiences for fans and reach newer and varied audiences. What impact will the integration of technology into the sports industry have on fan engagement and revenue generation moving forward?
- Nasser Fahad Al Khater, CEO, FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 LLC
- Manoj Badale, Co-founder & Managing Partner, Blenheim Chalcot; Chairman, Rajasthan Royals
- Hon. Jane Castor, Mayor of Tampa
- Donn Davis, Chairman and Founder, Founding Partner, Professional Fighters League, Revolution
- Alexandre Dreyfus, CEO, Chiliz and Socios.com
- Hon. Eric Johnson, Mayor of Dallas
- Daniel Marti, Head of Global Public Policy, Tencent
- Sandrine Nzeukou, Founder & CEO, Tessa
- Moderator: Stuart Livingstone-Wallace, Head of Middle East & North Africa, Bloomberg
In Conversation With Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina
- H.E. Sheikh Hasina, Prime Minister of the People's Republic of Bangladesh
- Moderator: Haslinda Amin, Host & Editor-at-Large, Qatar Economic Forum, Powered by Bloomberg
In Conversation With Prime Minister Garibashvili
- H.E. Irakli Garibashvili, Prime Minister of Georgia
- Moderator: Manus Cranny, Anchor, Bloomberg Television
In Conversation With President Akufo-Addo
- H.E. Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, President of the Republic of Ghana
- Moderator: Jennifer Zabasajja, Correspondent, Bloomberg Television
Return of the Multipolar World
Much of the coverage of the war in Ukraine has been framed in a bipolar world—the conflict as a struggle between Russia and the West. But outside of Europe, most states have taken a more nuanced approach, one that balances satisfying one major power without offending the other. Against this backdrop, General Petraeus shares his unique insight into the latest developments in Ukraine and how we can learn to navigate a world that is not divided into black and white, but rather, into many shades of gray.
- General David H. Petraeus (U.S. Army, Ret.), Partner, KKR; Chairman, KKR Global Institute
- Moderator: John Micklethwait, Editor-in-Chief, Bloomberg
What’s Next for Inflation?
Are central banks preparing to hit the pause button on monetary tightening? Despite stubbornly high inflation, expectations of further interest rate hikes are receding as policymakers now shift to supporting economic growth. Still, elevated energy costs, workers’ wage demands and other shocks could complicate their decisions. Our experts weigh in on the worldwide battle to restore price stability.
- H.E. Sheikh Bandar bin Mohammed bin Saoud Al-Thani, Governor, Qatar Central Bank; Chairman, Qatar Investment Authority
- Nouriel Roubini, Professor Emeritus of Economics & International Business, New York University's Stern School of Business
- Moderator: Stephanie Flanders, Head of Economics & Government, Bloomberg
Maximizing the Gulf’s Global Competitiveness
How can the Gulf nations maximize their global competitiveness in a dynamically shifting economic order? We’ll hear the latest from the leading finance ministers.
- H.E. Mohammed bin Abdullah Al-Jadaan, Minister of Finance, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
- H.E. Ali bin Ahmed Al-Kuwari, Minister of Finance, State of Qatar
- Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director, International Monetary Fund
- Moderator: Francine Lacqua, Anchor, Bloomberg Television
The Business of Sports
If the only thing you know about sports is who wins and who loses, you're missing the highest stakes action of all. We follow the money in the world of sports, and take you inside decisions that are powering the multibillion dollar industry.
- K. Don Cornwell, Co-Founder & CEO, Dynasty Equity
- Stephen Pagliuca, Senior Advisor, Bain Capital Private Equity; Managing General Partner & Co-Owner, Boston Celtics
- Chatri Sityodtong, Founder, Chairman & CEO, ONE Championship
- Moderator: Jennifer Zabasajja, Correspondent, Bloomberg Television
Networking Lunch
How Can Technology Innovation Accelerate the Path Towards Prosperity in Emerging Economies?
Fairmont Ballroom 1 (Breakout 1)
Many recent studies have highlighted how innovation - particularly market-creating innovation led by local entrepreneurs - can significantly accelerate economic development in emerging economies. Building and scaling life-enhancing products and services accessible to broader segments of the global community require constant and proper exploitation of new technologies to make such products and services affordable, accessible, and valuable. Advancements in emerging technologies, such as AI, blockchain, and IoT, can transform how these products and services are built and deployed to solve consumer and infrastructure problems in developing countries. How can governments, industry leaders, and development agencies collaborate to create an environment of innovation in emerging markets which would support economic development by bringing life-enhancing products and services to market?
- Eng. Omar Al-Ansari, Secretary General, Qatar Research, Development, and Innovation Council (QRDI)
- Dr. Ola Brown, Founder, Healthcap Africa
- Navin Gupta, Managing Director, South Asia & MENA, Ripple
- Hon. Minister Paula Ingabire, Ministry of Information Communication Technology and Innovation, Republic of Rwanda
- Dr. Inma Martinez, Digital Pioneer & AI Scientist, Chair of the Expert Group at the Global Partnership on AI (GPAI)
- Courtney Powell, COO and Managing Partner, 500 Global
- Matthias Rebellius, Managing Board Member of Siemens AG, Global CEO Siemens Smart Infrastructure
- Moderator: Farah Elbahrawy, Equities Deputy Team Leader & Reporter, Bloomberg News
Scaling Up Climate Finance: Overcoming Barriers to Green Growth
Proudly Sponsored By QNB
Fairmont Ballroom 3 (Breakout 2)
The quickened pace of climate change is pushing countries, multilateral institutions, and companies to rethink climate finance models and energy transition strategies, but developing countries are bearing the biggest brunt of climate effects with damages from climate change costing them an estimated $227 billion in 2022 alone. Talks at last year’s COP27 and discussion of PM Mia Mottley’s Bridgetown Agenda showed renewed promise for a solution that could address these losses through its newly established financial support structure – if multilateral banks reform and donor commitments materialize. How can climate finance from public, private, and other innovative sources be scaled up? What reforms and commitments are needed to support green growth across the globe?
- Ayaan Zeinab Adam, CEO, AFC Capital Partners and Senior Director, Africa Finance Corporation
- Sally Hamdalla, Head of Financial Institutions & Multilateral Relationships, QNB ALAHLI - Egypt
- Zoë Knight, Group Head, Centre of Sustainable Finance, Head of Climate Change MENAT, HSBC
- Hemant Mandal, Senior Advisor, Energy and Energy Transition, Global Counsel
- Moderator: Verity Ratcliffe, Middle East Energy News, Bloomberg
Carbon Markets & Inflation
Some claim that carbon pricing can be an effective tool for reducing global carbon emissions. But could it make energy more expensive? How does this fit into a world with rising inflation? BloombergNEF forecasts the impact of carbon pricing on the economy and the energy transition.
- Address from Emma Coker, Head of Carbon Research, BloombergNEF
A New Chapter of Global Capitalism
From the US Inflation Reduction Act, to the UBS/Credit Suisse merger, is the West drifting towards a form of state capitalism traditionally seen in emerging markets? In this session, we’ll discuss how this new era of global capitalism can bring success to individuals, financial institutions, governments and businesses.
- Elham Mahfouz, CEO, Commercial Bank of Kuwait
- Michael Miebach, CEO, Mastercard
- Jahja Setiaatmadja, President Director, Bank Central Asia
- Moderator: Manus Cranny, Anchor, Bloomberg Television
Tourism Finally Opening Up
We hit the biggest travel and tourism topics head on. From dissecting the potential bump in Asia tourism numbers as China opens up, the latest update from global sustainable tourism efforts, and debating whether A.I. chatbots are the future of holiday planning.
- Sébastien Bazin, Chairman & CEO, Accor Group
- Tan Sri Tony Fernandes, CEO, Capital A
- William Ellwood Heinecke, Founder & Chairman, Minor International
- Moderator: Mallika Kapur, Deputy Global Editor, Bloomberg Live Experiences
The World of Art & Luxury
Since 1744, Sotheby’s has been helping collectors and connoisseurs discover fine art and rare objects. With demand increasing and the definition of what’s collectible changing, Sotheby’s CEO Charles F. Stewart takes us on a journey into the world of auctions and the future of valuable art and luxury.
- Charles F. Stewart, CEO, Sotheby's
- Moderator: Manus Cranny, Anchor, Bloomberg Television
The Future of Storytelling
- Joana Vicente, CEO, Sundance Institute
- Moderator: Mallika Kapur, Deputy Global Editor, Bloomberg Live Experiences
Networking Break
In Conversation With President Abdo Benítez
- H.E. Mario Abdo Benítez, President of the Republic of Paraguay
- Moderator: Haslinda Amin, Host & Editor-at-Large, Qatar Economic Forum, Powered by Bloomberg
Technology Investing in Uncertain Times
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has said that the economic climate of layoffs and restructuring could last “many years.” How do you invest in technology at a time like this? Our experts tell us how and identify where the next billion dollar technology company is coming from.
- Pierpaolo Barbieri, Founder & CEO, Ualá
- Marcelo Claure, Founder & CEO, Claure Group
- Jack Selby, Managing Director, Thiel Capital
- Moderator: Caroline Hyde, Anchor, Bloomberg Television
Artificial Intelligence in Real Life
ChatGPT captured the world’s attention and imagination with the potential of artificial intelligence. But far from a future concern, organizations have been quietly and successfully implementing A.I. into their everyday operations for a while. We look beyond the hype and uncover the reality for A.I. and how it is already transforming our world.
- H.E. Abdulaziz bin Nasser bin Mubarak Al-Khalifa, President, Civil Service & Government Development Bureau, State of Qatar
- Hande Çilingir, Co-Founder & CEO, Insider
- Sachin Dev Duggal, Chief Wizard & Co-Founder, Builder.ai
- Raj Ganguly, Co-Founder & Co-CEO, B Capital
- Moderator: Haslinda Amin, Host & Editor-at-Large, Qatar Economic Forum, Powered by Bloomberg
Harnessing the Power of Blockchain
Blockchain experts take us on a trip into the technology that is set to revolutionize everything in how we trade, work and play.
- Ola Doudin, Co-Founder & CEO, BitOasis
- Yat Siu, Co-Founder & Executive Chairman, Animoca Brands
- Moderator: Caroline Hyde, Anchor, Bloomberg Television
The Future of Education
School leaders and educators have been in a state of constant adjustment over the past three years. In reaction to the Covid-19 pandemic, they developed new protocols and incorporated digital tools for remote learning. We hear from the husband and wife team behind BYJU's--a multibillion dollar education technology company--on how global education is set to evolve further.
- Divya Gokulnath, Co-Founder & Teacher, BYJU's
- Byju Raveendran, CEO & Founder, BYJU's
- Moderator: Mallika Kapur, Deputy Global Editor, Bloomberg Live Experiences
The Qatar Music Academy
The Qatar Music Academy children’s choir treats us to a unique performance.
Close of Qatar Economic Forum Mainstage Day Two
Future-Proofing the Workforce for Industry 4.0
Fairmont Ballroom 1 (Breakout 1)
Technological advancements, such as AI and machine learning, robotics and automation, blockchain, and IoT, are rapidly changing the world of work, transforming or replacing many traditional jobs. This seismic shift requires a rethinking of traditional education systems to keep pace with the workforce of tomorrow. But the digital divide and persistent demand for creative and cultural skills are pushing many countries and companies around the globe to take a hard look at the economic potential of the Orange Economy as a legitimate contributor to GDP, renewing focus on investing in education systems and upskilling that target the creative sector. What education systems are leading the way to provide technical and creative skills that will fuel growth? How can we best prepare workers and students for success in the jobs of tomorrow?
- Amal Enan, Partner 500 Global
- Robert Jenkins, Director, Education and Adolescent Development, Programme Group, UNICEF
- Tomaso Rodriguez, CEO, talabat
- Moderator: Farah Elbahrawy, Equities Deputy Team Leader & Reporter, Bloomberg News
The Shaikh Group Public Panel – Gulf Regional Economic Cooperation: Challenges and Opportunities
Fairmont Ballroom 3 (Breakout 2)
Over the past few years there has been a clear shift towards greater regional dialogue and de-escalation in the Middle East. These shifting geopolitical trends have altered regional cross-border trade and investment flows with signs of increased cooperation and growing ties. Further economic cooperation and connectivity may act as a pathway to mutual regional security. What are the challenges and opportunities for greater economic cooperation among regional actors? How can regional-led initiatives be supported and integrated into the global economy? How will changing regional relations affect the dynamic of regional economies on the global stage?
- Shaikha Najla Al Qasemi, Director of Global Affairs, B'huth Dubai Public Policy
- Dr. Hatim al Shanfari, Professor of Economics, Sultan Qaboos University
- Dr. Hasan Alhasan, Research Fellow for Middle East Policy, IISS
- Mehran Hagihiran, Director of Regional Initiatives, Bourse & Bazaar
- Moderator: Salman Shaikh, CEO & Founder of The Shaikh Group
Welcome Remarks
Haslinda Amin, Anchor, Bloomberg Television; Host & Editor-at-large, Qatar Economic Forum, Powered by Bloomberg
Strengthening Malaysia’s Economy
Amid a global slowdown, Malaysia is seeking to further diversify its export-oriented economy. We’ll hear how the Southeast Asian country is planning to restructure its energy sector, build a semiconductor hub and expand investment opportunities.
- H.E Mohd Rafizi Bin Ramli, Minister of Economy, Malaysia
- Haslinda Amin, Host & Editor-at-Large, Qatar Economic Forum, Powered by Bloomberg
The Future of Cryptocurrencies
What’s next for crypto as an asset class? Blockchain.com CEO Peter Smith gives his cryptocurrency outlook amid an evolving regulatory landscape.
- Peter Smith, Co-Founder & CEO, Blockchain.com
- Moderator: Jennifer Zabasajja, Correspondent, Bloomberg Television
The Future of Food
The global population could hit 9 billion by 2040. The environment simply won’t be able to handle the increased water use, land use and carbon emissions that feeding an extra billion will bring. We find out new technologies and new thinking will help us feed the world.
- Josh Tetrick, Co-Founder & CEO, Eat Just
- Moderator: Mallika Kapur, Deputy Global Editor, Bloomberg Live Experiences
On the Road to a Greener Future
The world is under pressure to achieve net zero by 2050, and electrical vehicles will have a big part to play in reaching the target. However, the IEA estimates that an EV requires 6 times the mineral inputs of a conventional car, further straining battery supplies. We speak to the CEO of Vinfast on how the industry is balancing market share, environmental impact and clean energy goals.
- Le Thi Thu Thuy, Vice Chairwoman, Vingroup JSC; CEO, Vinfast
- Haslinda Amin, Anchor, Bloomberg Television; Host & Editor-at-large, Qatar Economic Forum, Powered by Bloomberg
The New Commodities Supercycle?
Commodity markets are roaring, stirring a debate about whether prices are headed for an extended upswing. While not all investors and analysts believe we’re living in a commodities supercycle, one thing is for certain-- an energy revolution is underway— and the changes to the commodity market are no longer cyclical, but structural. We speak to the CEO of Ivanhoe Mines on the opportunities and risks facing the mining industry.
- Robert Friedland, Founder & Executive Co-Chairman, Ivanhoe Mines
- Moderator: Erik Schatzker, Editorial Director, Bloomberg New Economy
Closing Remarks from Bloomberg
Networking Lunch
Close of Qatar Economic Forum, Powered by Bloomberg
Mike Bloomberg is an entrepreneur and three-term mayor of New York City whose innovations in business, government, and philanthropy have made him a pioneering leader on critical issues facing the U.S. and the world. He has launched major coalitions to save and improve lives, including America’s largest campaigns to prevent gun violence and fight the climate crisis. He also serves as the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy on Climate Ambition and Solutions, and as the WHO Ambassador for Noncommunicable Diseases and Injuries.
In 1966, after graduating from Johns Hopkins University and Harvard Business School, Bloomberg was hired by a financial services firm, Salomon Brothers, for an entry-level job. He quickly rose through the ranks and eventually headed up the firm’s information systems. When Salomon was acquired in 1981, he was let go. With a vision for an information technology company that would bring greater transparency and fairness to the financial system, he launched a small startup in a one-room office. Bloomberg LP has grown every year since it was founded and today employs some 21,000 people in 120 countries.
Just weeks after the attacks of September 11, 2001, Bloomberg was elected mayor of New York City and led the city’s resurgence. He spearheaded the rebuilding of Lower Manhattan, fought poverty with new programs that became national models, and turned around a failing school system. Bloomberg reduced carbon emissions by 13 percent, increased New Yorkers’ life expectancy by three years, and cut crime by a third while reducing incarceration by nearly 40 percent. Despite the Great Recession, he led the city to record job growth.
After his third term in City Hall, he resumed leadership of Bloomberg LP and expanded his philanthropic work. Bloomberg Philanthropies works to improve lives in 700 cities and 150 countries across its core focus areas: public health, education, the environment, government innovation, the arts, and the Greenwood Initiative, which aims to accelerate the pace of wealth accumulation in Black communities. Over his lifetime, he has given $14.4 billion to philanthropy.
Bloomberg graduated from Johns Hopkins University and Harvard Business School.
H.E. Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani
Prime Minister & Minister of Foreign Affairs of the State of Qatar
BackHis Excellency Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani was appointed as Prime Minister of the State of Qatar on March 7th, 2023 through Amiri Decree No. (2) of 2023, while maintaining his position as Minister of Foreign Affairs since January 27, 2016. In His Excellency’s capacity as Prime Minister, his main priorities include advising His Highness the Amir of the State of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, on the formation of ministries in the country, and assisting His Highness the Amir in performing his duties and exercising his roles. His Excellency also leads the sessions of the Council of Ministers, including managing its discussions and supervising the coordination of work between the various ministries to achieve unity between governmental agencies and ensure the integration of their activities.
In his capacity as Minister of Foreign Affairs, His Excellency has prioritized promoting and expanding the country's bilateral and multilateral strategic relations and strengthening the status of the State of Qatar at both regional and international levels, as well as leading efforts to promote international peace and security. His Excellency is responsible for supervising and implementing the foreign policy of the State of Qatar to achieve its objectives. His Excellency has also sponsored Qatari mediation efforts in many regional crises over the past years, which contributed to reducing escalation and violence in various parts of the world and resulted in the signing of a number of peace agreements between various conflicting parties.
Alongside his position as Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, His Excellency also serves as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Qatar Fund for Development (QFFD) since 2014, which promotes the development of societies around the world by supporting education, healthcare, economic empowerment, and addressing climate change, in line with the Qatar National Vision 2030 and the UN Sustainable Development Goals. His Excellency also supervises QFFD’s projects in more than 70 countries around the world, particularly in the Middle East, Asia, and Africa, and has directed the fund's support towards primary and secondary education, in addition to the public health and economic development sectors in particular.
His Excellency has also been a member of the Supreme Council for Economic Affairs and Investment since 2014. The Supreme Council is responsible for economic and energy affairs,
investment of the country’s reserves, drafting the state's general policies in the economic, financial, commercial, and energy fields, and approving the priorities of public spending.
In addition to his aforementioned roles, His Excellency has invested in a number of successful economic projects and contributed to the establishment of several projects aimed at diversifying the local economy and attracting foreign direct investments, including launching programs that aim to encourage entrepreneurial joint ventures and support the State of Qatar’s economic growth.
Academic Qualifications & Professional Experience
His Excellency Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and Business Administration from the College of Business and Economics at Qatar University in 2003. Early in his career, His Excellency worked as an Economic Researcher at the Ruling Family Council in 2003, where he later became the Director of Economic Affairs in 2005.
In 2009, Sheikh Mohammed was appointed as Director of the Department of Public and Private Sectors Partnership at the Ministry of Business and Trade, which aimed to promote economic diversification programs and encourage entrepreneurial joint ventures. His Excellency also launched “Enterprise Qatar” – an initiative that provides technical and financial support for small and medium-sized enterprises to help them develop and advance.
From 2010 and 2011, Sheikh Mohammed served as the Secretary of the Personal Representative of His Highness the Father Amir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani for Follow-up Affairs at the Amiri Diwan. His Excellency also became Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Qatar Mining Company in the same year. He then became the Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Development of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises in 2011 and was appointed as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Aspire – Katara Investment Company.
In 2013, His Excellency joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as the Assistant Foreign Minister for International Cooperation Affairs, where his policies focused on promoting multilateral cooperation alongside implementing Qatar's foreign development policy and applying international cooperation strategies based on the Qatar National Vision 2030.
His Excellency Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani served as Deputy Prime Minister from 2017 to 2023 and Chairman of Qatar Investment Authority from 2018 to 2023.
Paul Kagame is the President of the Republic of Rwanda. He served as Chair of the AU from 2018 to 2019 and chaired the East African Community from 2018-2021. President Kagame continues to lead the AU Institutional reforms and serves as the AU Champion for Domestic Health Financing.
He also currently Chairs the Commonwealth.
Beginning in 1990, as commander of the forces of the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), he led the struggle to liberate Rwanda.
The RPF halted the Genocide against the Tutsi in 1994, which claimed over a million victims.
The hallmarks of President Kagame’s administration are peace and reconciliation, women’s empowerment, promotion of investment and entrepreneurship, and access to information technology, a cause he also champions as Co-Chair of the Broadband Commission for Sustainable Development.
He tweets @PaulKagame. You can follow President Kagame’s daily work @UrugwiroVillage
Jennifer Zabasajja is a correspondent and anchor for Bloomberg TV and Quicktake. She focuses on live and pre-recorded video content on the African region across Bloomberg media platforms, from culture to business to media and more.
She previously anchored and reported on Bloomberg Quicktake’sdaily streaming morning shows. Her notable interviews include entrepreneurs and public sector leaders both domestically in the United States and abroad.
Jennifer joined Bloomberg in New York in 2017 after years of producing and reporting at various networks including CBS News, NBC News, and the previously named CNNMoney platform.
She holds a bachelor’s degree from New York University with a double major in broadcast journalism and sociology.
H.E. Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi
Minister of State for Energy Affairs
State of Qatar
President & CEO of QatarEnergy
Mr. Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi is the Minister of State for Energy Affairs of the State of Qatar, and the Deputy Chairman of QatarEnergy (formerly Qatar Petroleum). He is also the President and CEO of QatarEnergy, a position he has held since 2014.
Mr. Al-Kaabi joined “Qatar Petroleum” in 1986 as a student studying Petroleum & Natural Gas Engineering at Pennsylvania State University in the USA, from which he graduated in 1991 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Petroleum & Natural Gas Engineering. Since then, he held several key technical, commercial, and managerial positions before being appointed as the Director of the Oil & Gas Ventures Directorate in 2006, where he was overseeing all of Qatar’s oil and gas field development, as well as all the exploration activities.
In September 2014, Mr. Al-Kaabi was appointed as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Qatar Petroleum, where he oversaw its gas, oil, and petrochemical operations and development in Qatar and internationally (before undergoing the transformation to become QatarEnergy in October 2021), and in 2018 His Excellency was appointed as the Minister of State for Energy Affairs of the State of Qatar.
Minister AlSawad is known and respected among the oil companies and IOCs working in Iraq. He has made significant contributions to the Iraqi oil sector throughout his career as an engineer and a leader in the SOC. He now brings his wide range of experience to the ministry.
Born in Basra in 1958 and graduated from Basra University's Engineering College, Mechanical Department in 1979 with a BSC degree, he continued his education to obtain a Master’s degree in 1983, then joined South Oil Company's Mechanical Service department as Mechanical Engineer.
Minister AlSawad ascended through the ranks of the South Oil Company over the years to become head of the Design Department in the year 2000 and head of the Project Committee at SOC in 2008, then deputy Director General in 2015, only to be promoted once again to become the Director General of SOC in 2015.
After a solid service of 37 years in Service, he retired from his job as Director General.
Upon forming the government headed by Prime Minister Mohammad Shia alSudani, Mr. AlSawad was called upon to become the Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Oil, in October 2022.
His Royal Highness Prince Abdulaziz was appointed Minister of Energy in September 2019. In his capacity as Minister of Energy of Saudi Arabia, Prince Abdulaziz is responsible for coordinating the Kingdom’s domestic and international energy policies in line with the goals of Vision 2030. This includes overseeing energy activities within the Kingdom; regulating the oil, gas, electricity, nuclear and renewables sectors in the interests of the Kingdom in the short and long term and directing Saudi international policy with regard to relations with producers (including through OPEC and OPEC+) and with consumers. He has been an active participant in shaping energy policy, both nationally and internationally for more than thirty years and he is the chairman of many energy related organizations.
Prior to his appointment as the Minister of Energy, Prince Abdulaziz served in numerous capacities in the Ministry over the past three decades, including as Minister of State for Energy Affairs, Vice Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Assistant Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Deputy Minister for Petroleum Affairs and Adviser to the Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources.
HRH holds a Master’s Degree in Business Administration (MBA) (1985) and a Bachelor's Degree in Industrial Management (1982), both from King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals. After graduation, he served from 1985-87 as Director of the Economic and Industrial Research Division of the Research Institute at King Fahd University of Petroleum.
Francine Lacqua is an award-winning London-based anchor for Bloomberg Television. She co-anchors the weekday 3-hour daily program “Bloomberg Surveillance” with Tom Keene, where she provides insight on foreign policy, global markets and the top business stories of the day. She also presents “Leaders with Lacqua,” a special series where she sits down with top CEOs, entrepreneurs and public figures.
Since joining Bloomberg in 2000, Lacqua has covered the World Economic Forum in Davos, IMF in Washington, G20 meetings, the EU Leaders Summit and OPEC. She also led Bloomberg Television’s coverage of the Italian and French elections where she was one of the first international reporters to interview cabinet members.
While at Bloomberg, Lacqua has interviewed high-profile figures such as French President Emmanuel Macron, former UK Prime Minister David Cameron, IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde, World Bank President Jim Yong Kim, Billionaire financier George Soros and ECB President Mario Draghi. She has also interviewed finance ministers from South Korea, Russia, France, Mexico, Italy and Greece, as well as moderating televised debates from the World Economic Forum in Davos and the European Economic Governance package.
In 2013 Lacqua won ‘International TV Personality of the Year’ at the AIB Media Awards. She was previously nominated in 2009 and 2010. In 2012, she was part of the Bloomberg team that won the OPEC award for ‘Public Interest Reporting’. She has an LLB in English law from King’s College in London and earned her undergraduate degree at the Sorbonne. She is fluent in French and Italian.
Personal data:
- Born on 31 May 1963 in Székesfehérvár, Hungary
- Married, with five children
- Graduated from Eötvös Loránd University of Budapest at the Faculty of Law (1987)
- Speaks native Hungarian and English
Professional experience:
- 2010 - Prime Minister
- 2003 - Chairman of Fidesz - Hungarian Civic Union
- 2002 - Vice-chairman of the European People's Party, re-elected in 2006 and 2009
- 1998-2002 - Prime Minister
- 1993 - Chairman of Fidesz
- 1990 - Member of the Hungarian National Assembly
- 1989 - Member of the delegation to the Opposition Roundtable
- 1988 - Founding member of the Alliance of Young Democrats (Fidesz)
Awards:
Prime Minister Orbán holds numerous international awards. In May 2001, he received the Freedom Award of the American Enterprise Institute and the New Atlantic Initiative in Washington, D.C. As of August, 2001, Mr. Orbán holds the Polak Award of the Maria Polak Foundation, and in November 2001 he received the Franz-Josef Strauß award granted by the Hanns Seidel Foundation.
Viktor Orbán was the first to be given the Saint Stephan prize in September 2002, in the Hungarian city of Esztergom. The Foundation of Mérite Européen awarded him its golden medal in March, 2004.
In 2006 he received an honorary citizenship from Esztergom, and in 2008 the mayor of Csíkszereda awarded him the Pro Urbe award. On October 3, 2012 Viktor Orbán received the István Bocskai Prize founded by the Sapientia - Hungarian University of Transylvania.
In 2013 the Prime Minister received the award of World Health Organization for his efforts to curb smoking.
Micklethwait is the Editor-In-Chief of Bloomberg where he oversees editorial content across all Bloomberg platforms, including its news, newsletters, magazines, opinion, television, radio and digital properties, as well as its research services including Bloomberg Intelligence.
Before joining Bloomberg in February 2015, Micklethwait was Editor-in-Chief of The Economist where he led the newspaper into the digital age while expanding its readership and enhancing its reputation.
He joined The Economist in 1987 as a finance correspondent and served as Business editor and United States editor before being named Editor-in-Chief in 2006. Micklethwait began his career in banking at Chase Manhattan in London after studying history at Magdalen College, Oxford.
He is the co-author of six books, most recently The Fourth Revolution: The Global Race to Reinvent the State. In 2010, Micklethwait was named Editors’ Editor by the British Society of Magazine Editors. He is a trustee of the British Museum.
His Excellency Khalid A. Al-Falih has been Minister of Investment of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia since 25 February 2020. He previously served as Minister of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources from May 2016 to September 2019, as Minister of Health from April 2015 to May 2016, and as Chairman of the Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Saudi Aramco) Board of Directors from April 2015 to September 2019. Prior to his appointment as Chairman, HE Al-Falih also held key leadership positions across the company, including President and Chief Executive Officer from January 2009 to May 2015.
H.E. Al-Falih has been consistently recognized for his leadership in spearheading the strategic transformation of leading sectors and organizations across Saudi Arabia. His achievements include driving large-scale business initiatives and industrial projects, building organizational capacity for the benefit of Saudi citizens through economic and social programs, and enhancing the performance and impact of complex organizations. For many years, he has taken a particular interest in leveraging business activities to fuel social development and economic diversification; fostering strong collaboration between Saudi Arabia’s public, private and academic/research sectors; and promoting the importance of the fields of science and digital technology among young people.
HE Al-Falih remains committed to enriching society through the nurturing of entrepreneurship and innovation; the creation of a knowledge-based society equipped to meet the challenges of the future; the creation of new business and human resource development opportunities; and the protection of the environment. His appointment as Minister of Investment is in line with HE Al-Falih’s exceptional achievements in advancing private sector growth in the Kingdom, which is a central driver of Vision 2030, Saudi Arabia’s ongoing economic diversification plan.
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In 2009, HE Al-Falih received the prestigious King Abdulaziz Medal (First Class), which is Saudi Arabia’s highest civilian honor for service to the country. HE Al-Falih has received many notable awards and recognitions throughout his career. In 2018, the Japanese government awarded him its national decoration, The Order of the Rising Sun. In 2016, he was recognized as Energy Intelligence Petroleum Executive of the Year.
HE Al-Falih earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from Texas A&M University in 1982 and completed his MBA at KFUPM in 1991. In 2009, he received an honorary doctorate from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology.
The Rt. Hon. Kemi Badenoch MP
Secretary of State for Business & Trade
The United Kingdom of Great Britain & Northern Ireland
The Rt Hon Kemi Badenoch MP was appointed Secretary of State for the Department for Business and Trade on 7 February 2023. She remains Secretary of State for International Trade and President of the Board of Trade on, which she was appointed to on 6 September 2022, and Minister for Women and Equalities for the Equality Hub, which she was appointed to on 25 October 2022.
Previously she was Minister of State at the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities between 16 September 2021 and 6 July 2022.
She was Minister of State (Minister for Equalities) in the Equality Hub between 14 February 2020 and July 2022.
She was previously Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury from 13 February 2020 to 15 September 2021 and Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for Education from 27 July 2019 to 13 February 2020.
Stephanie Flanders is the Senior Executive Editor for Bloomberg Economics. She oversees a team of nearly 100 Bloomberg economic reporters and research economist in the developed and developing world. From daily commentary to in-depth analysis, the team produces stories for all Bloomberg's platforms, including the Bloomberg Terminal, Bloomberg Businessweek, Bloomberg Markets Magazine as well as Bloomberg.com.
Prior to joining Bloomberg in October 2017, Stephanie was Chief Market Strategist for UK and Europe with JP Morgan Asset Management where she was delivering insight into the global economy and financial markets to investors in Europe and around the world. Stephanie was Economics Editor for the BBC from 2008 to 2013, where her national and global economic analysis was broadcast around the world and widely respected. Prior to joining the BBC, she was a speechwriter and senior advisor to US Treasury Secretary Lawrence H. Summers in the Second Clinton Administration.
She holds a degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics from Oxford University and Master's in Public Administration from Kennedy School of Government. She is also the Governor of the National Institute for Economic and Social Research and the Ditchley Foundation and a Trustee for the Kennedy Memorial Trust.
Shou Chew is the Chief Executive Officer of TikTok where he is responsible for leading the overall business and bringing the company's vision to life. Shou has been a member of the TikTok family since its inception, first having led a team of ByteDance's early investors. Prior to joining TikTok, Shou served as the Executive Director, President-International & SVP at Xiaomi Corp and as a Partner at DST Global.
Born and raised in Singapore, Shou went to university in London following the completion of his mandatory military service. He holds an undergrad degree from University College London (UCL) and an MBA from Harvard Business School. He currently lives in Singapore with his wife Vivian, and their two children, but you can often find him on a plane or visiting TikTok offices around the world.
Caroline Hyde hosts Bloomberg Television’s flagship daily technology show from New York. She has also served as anchor of “The Close” and the network’s chief European correspondent.
Hyde joined Bloomberg in 2008 to cover the European debt markets for Bloomberg News as a corporate finance reporter, focusing on company loans and bonds as well as sovereign debt.
Prior to joining Bloomberg, Hyde worked in public relations for London’s Moorgate Group. She holds an MA (Oxon) in Politics, Philosophy and Economics from Oxford University.
Kristian Feldborg is widely regarded as an influential figure in London's Tech ecosystem. With a proven track record of building successful banking, private equity, and insurance solutions throughout his career, he has earned a reputation as a leading expert in the field.
Kristian is also the founder of Vesuvio Labs, a startup incubator and seed fund that aims to support innovation and entrepreneurship in the FinTech, InsurTech and WealthTech space. His leadership and guidance have helped many startups achieve success, and his vision for the future of the industry is sure to influence the direction of the Tech ecosystem for years to come.
Lena is a Partner in the Vista Africa Fixed Income Fund, focused on SMEs in the region.
Prior to founding DCA, an investment advisory firm based in Dakar, SENEGAL, Lena Sene was the Executive Director of Business Development at CGF Bourse in Senegal for 4 years. Before that, Lena was a Managing Director at Deer Isle Capital LLC in New York, where she was responsible for overall business development and for the firm’s Africa investment strategy. Prior to Deer Isle, Lena was at Impact Capital Partners, an international alternative investment advisory firm focused on emerging and frontier markets. She began her banking career as a Private Banker at JPMorgan Chase from 2000 to 2004 and at Lehman Brothers from 2004 to 2006.
In 2006, Lena was appointed by President Georges W. Bush to the White House Fellowship, a 58 year-old non-partisan leadership program, along with 13 other nationally selected Americans. She served for Secretary Alphonso R. Jackson at the Department of Housing and Urban Development. She obtained Top Secret Security Clearance from the FBI. Lena was also selected 1 of 120 global scholar-leaders inducted into the Academy of Achievement Class of 2007.
In 2012, Lena was selected by former Prime Minister of SENEGAL, Idrissa Seck, to serve as his Campaign Director during the Senegalese presidential elections.
Lena has a B.A. in Economics from Bates College, an MBA from Harvard Business School and a Master in Public Administration (MPA) from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, where she was selected a Mort Zuckerman Fellow.
She is fluent in English, French, Russian and Wolof.
Patrick Wu
Head of Macro and Co-Head of Trading Asia Pacific & the Middle East
Crédit Agricole Corporate Investment Bank
Patrick Wu is Head of Macro and Co-Head of Trading, Asia-Pacific and the Middle-East for Credit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank, based in Hong Kong. Patrick manages the Bank’s FX, FX option, bond and interest rate derivatives trading franchise across the two regions, with a focus on bridging the emerging markets with the global financial markets.
Patrick is the pioneer in the offshore CIBM and CNH businesses. He started to trade offshore RMB bonds back in 2008 and was heavily involved in the very first Dim Sum bond deal and first CNH derivatives in the offshore market.
He’s a member of both the HKMA-TMA market development committee and market practice committee. He also serves as Vice-Chairman of China Capital Markets Committee in ASIFMA.
Before joining Credit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank, Patrick was Head of North Asia Trading for Australia and New Zealand Banking Group. He was also Head of Trading for JP Morgan in China and Head of Credit Trading for The Standard Chartered Bank in North East Asia.
Benjamin Wegg-Prosser is the co-founder and Managing Director of Global Counsel. He supports client teams in areas ranging from technology and media to FDI attraction. Ben has a background in business and politics with a career split between working in the media and the UK government and held the position ‘Director of Strategic Communications for the British Prime Minister’ between 2005-7. Prior to this, he worked in the Department of Trade and Industry, and the Cabinet Office. His business career includes roles in publishing for both established media companies and digital start-ups.
Rizwan heads Citi’s Banking, Capital Markets & Advisory business which spans 60 emerging markets in Middle East, Africa and Central Asia, with bankers on the ground in 30 of these markets. He has recently relocated to Dubai from London. Rizwan has held multiple roles during his 24 year career (mostly with Citi in two spells) across Capital Markets and Corporate & Investment Banking. Prior to assuming his current role, he was responsible for Citi’s Loans & Acquisition Finance business in EMEA. He has helped raise in excess of $300bn in debt capital for Citi’s clients. Rizwan holds BBA (Hons) and MBA degrees from the Institute of Business Administration, Karachi and a Masters in Finance degree from London Business School.
Sheikh Ali Alwaleed Al-Thani currently is the Chief Executive Officer of Qatar’s Investment Promotion Agency. He was further appointed as Board Member of Katara Hospitality in March 2021.
On December 1st, 2018, Sheikh Ali was appointed as coordinator for economic affairs at the Prime Minister’s office overseeing a broad range of activities related to Qatar’s economic and investment agenda.
Previously, Sheikh Ali was the Director of the State of Qatar’s Office to the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Geneva, Switzerland, where he oversaw negotiations and standing committees in the WTO related to Market Access, Agriculture, Trade and Investment, Subsidies and other key areas. Moreover, he was elected by consensus as Chairman of the World Trade Organization’s (WTO’s) Trade-Related Investment Measures (TRIMS) Committee in 2017, which is responsible for one of the principal legal agreements of the WTO. In his role as Chairman, he oversaw the regular functioning of the committee, and was involved in the ongoing Investment Facilitation working group discussions. Sheikh Ali also served as the Commercial Attaché to Qatar’s permanent mission to the United Nations, covering negotiations and standing committees in the UNCTAD and World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).
Sheikh Ali holds a Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service from Georgetown University, as well as an Executive Master’s in international Negotiation & Policy-Making from the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva.
Themis joined Wealth Management as Head of the European Investment office in February 2014 and more recently expanded his responsibility to include the whole of EMEA. His team covers EMEA markets from Credit, Equities and FX, and Economics. Themis also sits on the Global Investment Committee, which formulates the investments views for UBS Wealth management clients. Prior to joining Wealth Management, he spent 20 years in the UBS Investment Bank, 15 of which as an equity analyst covering sectors, during which time he was often ranked as one of the top analysts in his sector. In the last five years with the IB, Themis was in Research Management, heading up the European Product Management, a role which included amongst others chairing the Investment Review Committee and the Equities morning meeting. During that time he also took on the responsibility of heading up the Emerging European Research team, as well as managing a number of Developed Europe sectorial teams. Themis holds a PhD degree in Chemistry from University of Witwatersrand (South Africa) and an MBA from Graduate School of Business, University of Cape Town.
Ziad Daoud is the Chief Emerging Markets Economist at Bloomberg Economics. He leads a global team producing in-depth analysis of data and policies and their interaction with financial markets. Previously, he was the chief Middle East economist for Bloomberg, headed the economics team at QNB Group and worked as an economist at Fulcrum Asset Management. He holds a PhD in Economics from the London School of Economics and a BSc in Economics and statistics from University College London.
Christian Angermayer is a serial entrepreneur and investor who builds and invests in companies that are shaping the Next Human Agenda: a future in which technology empowers people to live longer, healthier, and happier lives.
Christian’s family office and private investment firm, Apeiron Investment Group, has more than USD 3 billion under management and 50 people across five international locations. Apeiron focuses on Life Sciences, FinTech & Crypto, Future Tech and Experiences, Hospitality & Happiness. Over the past 20 years, Christian has founded three unicorns himself and has been the lead investor in four unicorns and two decacorns.
Christian is an active thought leader and is a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader, a member of the Milken Institute Young Leaders’ Circle, a partner of the Munich Security Conference, an advisor to President Paul Kagame of Rwanda, and a founding member of President Macron’s “Scale-Up Europe” initiative. His Angermayer Policy and Innovation Forum convenes international heads of states, politicians, investors, and scientists coming together to discuss and address global priorities.
Christian is passionate about mental health and is a co-founder of the AURORA Institute, the first non-profit incubator of its kind, focused on funding the world’s leading individuals and NGOs dedicated to solving the global mental health crisis.
He is passionate about the arts and film and has been the (executive) producer of 26 feature films, including the critically acclaimed movies Filth (2013), Hector and the Search for Happiness (2014) and the Zack Snyder hit Army of Thieves (2021).
Christophe Bavière, co-CEO of Eurazeo since February 06th, 2023, member of the Executive Board since March 10th, 2021, was also Chairman and Founder of Idinvest Partners from 2001 till 2021.
Prior to joining Idinvest Partners, Christophe Bavière held senior positions within the AGF-Allianz Group, including CIO of Allianz Private Equity Partners and CEO of Allianz Global Investors France.
Starting in 1997, he was instrumental in developing private equity as a separate asset class within diversified portfolios and in establishing Idinvest Partners (formerly AGF Private Equity). Previously, Christophe had worked at the Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations as well as BNP Paribas.
Christophe Bavière is a Board Member of AFG, the French Asset Management Association. Until 2015, Christophe Bavière was Vice President of France Invest, a private equity trade association, and served for 2 mandates on the Consultative Commission of the AMF, the French financial markets authority. He is also a Colonel in the French Air Force Reserve.
Christophe Bavière holds an MBA from the University of Ottawa. He is also a member of the French Institute of Actuaries (IAF). In 2007, he was elected “Private Equity Personality of the Year” for 2006 by Les Echos - Capital Finance.
He is a Knight in the National Order of the Legion of Honour.
Tasneem is the Founding Partner of Excelestar Ventures. She previously worked in financial services on the sell-side at Lehman Brothers and at Matrix Partners. Notable investments of hers are Augmenix (acq. by Boston Scientific), nVision (acq. by Boston Scientific), Conformal Medical, Diesel Labs, Instylla and Altiostar Networks.
She is also a Managing Partner of Golden Seeds. She also contributed an essay, “Women and the Workplace,” to the book, Passion & Purpose: Stories from the Best and Brightest Young Business Leaders. She is a graduate of Wellesley College and Harvard Business School.
Tasneem has always been excited to further women leadership and women in business. Throughout her career, Tasneem has thought about the female experience; starting from being a young, active member of the Women of Lehman Brothers, then leading as President of Wellesley College Alumnae Boston (Wellesley College’s largest alumnae organization), and now finally being a Managing Director of Golden Seeds. She is passionately and deliberately mentoring and searching for female-led companies. She believes that investing in women is the best way to bring more women into leadership roles.
If she is not working, Tasneem is with her three children and husband. She is often seen at ice skating rinks, soccer fields and speech tournaments. She also is Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees at the Pike School, a Member on Wellesley College’s President’s Advisory Council, an Ambassador for the Wellesley College Albright Institute, Charter Member of TiE Boston, member of Brigham and Women’s Cancer Research and Care Advisory Board, member of the Phillips Academy Andover Development Board, and Head of Women’s organization of her local mosque community. Tasneem was named the Startup Boston’s Equity Champion winner and a Boston Business Journal Power 50: Movement Makers honoree.
Patrick Zhong has over 20 years of experience in VC, PE, and public equity. As the Founding Managing Partner of M31 Capital, he leads the firm's dedication to investing in next-generation companies with strong ties to China. M31 Capital has invested in industry leaders such as ByteDance, Grail, SuperMonkey, and others.
Prior to M31 Capital, Patrick served as Co-CEO of Giant Networks, a leading technology company in China, and Chief Investment Officer at Wanda Group, a global Fortune 500 company with major presence in real estate, entertainment, and sports. He also spent seven years as Senior Managing Director and Global Partner at Fosun Group, where he transformed the company into a global investment platform. Before returning to China, Patrick was an investor at Wellington Management where he made investments in the US and China and became a top institutional shareholder in Tencent, Baidu, Alibaba.com, Ctrip, Netease, and Focus Media, and a number of American leading growth companies.
Patrick holds an MBA from the University of Illinois and a bachelor's degree from China Foreign Affairs University in Beijing. He is also a CFA charter holder.
Mohammed is the Chief Investment Officer for North and South Americas at Qatar Investment Authority (QIA). He leads QIA investments across the various asset classes in the Americas region, and is also a member of the QIA Executive committee.
Mohammed was the President of Qatar Investment Authority US Office in New York for the period 2015 to 2020. Mohammed led the establishment of QIA’s office. QIA US office hosts an investment team that supports QIA to become a significant investor in the US.
Since joining QIA in 2010, Mohammed held multiple roles such as Portfolio Manager for the TMT Portfolio, Industrial Portfolio and Head of the Private Equity Funds Portfolio.
Before joining QIA, Mohammed was a Director – Corporate Banking at Masraf Al-Rayan covering the Government and Real Estate Sectors between 2006 and 2010, and a Financial Analyst at ExxonMobil Treasury in Qatar between 2004-2006.
Mohammed is a CFA Charterholder, 2013. He holds an MBA from TRIUM Program, 2018, and a Double Major Bachelor’s Degrees in Statistics and Finance from the University of Missouri – Columbia.
Mohamed Adel Ghanem, MD is the Head of Healthcare at Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) where he oversees QIA’s investments in the healthcare industry and plays a crucial role in shaping QIA’s investment strategy in the healthcare sector.
He has held the role since 2016, and prior to that was a healthcare analyst within the Fund.
Mohamed is a trained physician and practiced as a cardiologist before transitioning into investment. He holds a medical degree from Alexandria University, as well as a Master’s in Cardiology and Angiology.
Prior to joining QIA, he held the positions of Associate in Investment Banking at EFG Hermes and an Assistant Lecturer of Cardiology and Angiology at Alexandria University Main Hospital.
Steven T. Mnuchin
77th Secretary of the Treasury
The United States of America
Founder & Managing Partner
Liberty Strategic Capital
Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin serves as the Founder & Managing Partner of Liberty Strategic Capital and chairs the firm’s Investment Committee. Prior to founding Liberty, he served as the 77th Secretary of the Treasury from February 2017 through January 2021.
As Secretary, Mr. Mnuchin was responsible for leading the U.S. Treasury, whose mission is to maintain a strong economy, foster economic growth, and create job opportunities by promoting the conditions that enable prosperity at home and abroad. He was also responsible for strengthening national security by combating economic threats and protecting the U.S. financial system, as well as managing the U.S. Government’s finances. Mr. Mnuchin also oversaw cybersecurity for the financial services sector and all Treasury bureaus including the IRS.
Secretary Mnuchin played a pivotal role in shaping and advancing the Administration’s economic agenda, including the passage and implementation of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and the CARES Act. He also led the Treasury Department’s regulatory reform efforts. Secretary Mnuchin was chair of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) and was a member of the National Security Council. He was responsible for using economic tools to combat terrorist financing and other threats to the United States and our allies.
Prior to his confirmation, he served as Founder, Chairman, and Chief Executive Officer of Dune Capital Management. He founded OneWest Bank Group LLC and served as its Chairman and Chief Executive Officer until its sale to CIT Group Inc. Earlier in his career, Secretary Mnuchin worked at The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., where he was a Partner and served as Chief Information Officer. He has extensive experience in global financial markets and investments.
Secretary Mnuchin is committed to philanthropic activities and previously served as a Member of the Boards of the Museum of Contemporary Art Los Angeles (MOCA), the Whitney Museum of Art, the Hirschhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden on the Mall, the UCLA Health System Board, the New York Presbyterian Hospital Board, and the Los Angeles Police Foundation. He was born and raised in New York City.
Secretary Mnuchin holds a BA from Yale University.
Erik Schatzker is the Editorial Director of Bloomberg New Economy ("BNE"), the Bloomberg Media division that convenes events and develops content exploring the transition to a more resilient, equitable and sustainable economy.
Schatzker, based in New York, is responsible for defining BNE’s editorial priorities and objectives and for programming the New Economy Forum, Bloomberg’s flagship conference, and regional gatherings under the Gateway banner. He also contributes regularly to the New Economy Saturday newsletter, hosts TV interviews, and serves as an editor-at-large at Bloomberg Businessweek.
Prior to joining BNE, Schatzker spent 15 years at Bloomberg Television as a reporter, anchor and interviewer. He developed and hosted the Front Row series of in-depth conversations with preeminent leaders in finance. His recent accomplishments include a rare interview with Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro in Caracas, breaking major developments in the multibillion-dollar collapse of Archegos Capital Management and a Businessweek cover story in which he went behind the scenes of an FBI sting operation.
Previously, Schatzker was a reporter, editor, bureau chief, and team leader for Bloomberg News in Canada and the US. He graduated from the University of Toronto with a degree in history and began his career at the South Pacific Mail in Santiago, Chile.
Bill Winters was appointed to the Board of Standard Chartered PLC as Group Chief Executive on 10 June 2015, having joined the Group in May 2015. He is based in London.
Bill has had a distinguished career in banking, having spent 26 years with JP Morgan in diverse leadership roles, becoming co-Chief Executive Officer of the investment bank in 2004 until he stepped down in 2009. Bill was the only career banker to be invited to be a committee member of the Independent Commission on Banking, established by the UK government in 2010 to recommend ways to improve competition and financial stability in banking. Subsequently, he served as advisor to the Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards and was asked by the Court of the Bank of England to complete an independent review of the bank’s liquidity operations. Bill founded the hedge fund Renshaw Bay in 2011 where he was Chairman and CEO until he stepped down from the company on appointment to the Standard Chartered PLC Board.
Bill recently Chaired the Taskforce for Scaling Voluntary Carbon Markets and Co-Chairs the B20 Action Council on Sustainability & Global Emergencies.
Bill is an independent non-executive director of Novartis International AG. Bill was previously a non-executive director of Pension Insurance Corporation plc before stepping down in October 2015.
He holds a Bachelor’s degree in International Relations from Colgate University and an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
Dina Powell McCormick
Global Head of Sustainability & Inclusive Growth; Global Head of Sovereign Business
Goldman Sachs
Dina Powell McCormick is a member of the Management Committee at Goldman Sachs, where she serves as Global Head of Sovereign Institutional Business and as Global Head of Sustainability and Inclusive Growth, overseeing the firm’s commitment to climate finance business and inclusive growth. This includes the firm’s One Million Black Women initiative, the largest investment aimed at narrowing opportunity gaps and advancing racial equity for black women.
Earlier in her career she led the firm’s Impact Investing Business, deploying market-based loans and equity to drive sustainable economic development and revitalize under-served communities. During this same period, she was also President of The Goldman Sachs Foundation, developing and overseeing two major initiatives to drive economic growth and opportunity — 10,000 Women and 10,000 Small Businesses — that successfully provided business education and capital to women and small businesses, respectively.
Dina has also served in senior ranks of the United States government across two administrations. Most recently, as the Deputy National Security Advisor and previously as Assistant Secretary of State and as a senior White House advisor to the President.
Dina was recently named Chair of the Robin Hood Foundation and is a board member of Mount Sinai, Lincoln Center, the National Geographic Society, and the Harvard Kennedy School Center for Public Leadership.
Mr Al-Mahmoud was appointed Chief Executive Officer of QIA in September 2018. Under his oversight, QIA has pivoted its investment strategy to have a greater focus on diversification and on investments that have clear ESG goals. Mr AlMahmoud has also overseen the adoption of a new operating model. Prior to his appointment at QIA, Mr Al-Mahmoud was the CEO of Qatar Museums, where he led the opening of the National Museum of Qatar. His previous roles include being CEO of Qatar Development Bank (QDB), Director of Investment Affairs for H.E. the Former Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Head of Risk Management at QIA. Mr Al-Mahmoud holds a number of government and board roles, including: Vice-Chairman of Qatar Exchange, the Doha- Based International stock exchange; Vice-Chairman of Qatar Airways; Special Advisor to Qatar Museums’ Chairperson, H.E. Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani; and board member for Volkswagen Group, QNB, Qatari Diar, the Doha Film Institute and Hamad Bin Khalifa University. Mr Al-Mahmoud holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and Finance from George Washington University in the US
Ken Moelis is the Founder, Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chief Executive Officer of Moelis & Company. Ken has over 40 years of experience both as an investment banker and an executive, having served in various significant leadership roles where he has been responsible for the innovation and growth of franchises across the industry.
Prior to founding Moelis & Company, Ken was President of UBS Investment Bank and previously Joint Global Head of Investment Banking. Before joining UBS, Ken was Head of Corporate Finance at Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette. He began his investment banking career at Drexel Burnham Lambert.
Ken holds a B.S. in Economics and an M.B.A. from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. He serves on the Board of Trustees at University of Pennsylvania, the Wharton Board of Overseers and the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center Board of Advisors. He was formerly Chair and Director on the Tourette Association of America Board.
Rohit Sipahimalani joined Temasek in 2008 as Head of Telecommunications, Media & Technology. In 2012, he was appointed Co-Chief Investment Officer and has since held various roles across the organisation before being appointed to his current position.
Prior to joining Temasek, Rohit spent 11 years with Morgan Stanley holding senior positions across its Mumbai and Hong Kong offices before his appointment as Managing Director & Head of South East Asia Investment Banking in Singapore.
Rohit started his career with Citibank, India and McKinsey & Co in India.
Haslinda Amin is a news Correspondent and Anchor for Bloomberg Television. Based in Singapore, she has been at the heart of events driving the transformation of Asia. Haslinda has reported on major financial and political developments such as Suharto's downfall, the bloody anti-government clashes in Thailand and elections across ASEAN, India and Pakistan.
Haslinda has interviewed world leaders in politics and industry including Lee Kuan Yew, Mahathir Mohamad, Joko Widodo, Benigno Aquino, Thaksin Shinawatra, Tony Blair, Joe Biden, Al Gore, Timothy Geithner, Paul Volcker, Jean-Claude Trichet, Stanley Fischer, John Travolta and Jenson Button. She also speaks regularly at conferences like those hosted by the World Economic Forum, Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation, ASEAN and Asian Development Bank. She's been invited to moderate discussions organised by the Milken Institute, Blackrock, UBS, Barclays, SALT and Aberdeen Asset Management among others.
As part of her wide-ranging role at Bloomberg TV, Haslinda is host and executive producer of 'High Flyers' which has been nominated for Best Talk Show at the Asian TV Awards. Shot on location inside one of Singapore's most visible attractions, the Singapore Flyer, each episode features Asia's biggest names. 'High Flyers' is the longest-running program on the channel and is aired globally.
Haslinda began her career in radio covering regional politics. She joined Bloomberg Television in 2002. She graduated from the National University of Singapore, majoring in International Politics and English. She speaks English, Malay and Bahasa Indonesia.
David leads BloombergNEF’s oil and renewable fuels research teams, based in London. The oil and renewable fuels research teams at BNEF analyse the fundamentals of the traded market, the impact of the energy transition on the sector, and the strategy response of oil companies.
Prior to joining BNEF, David spent time as an oil trader with Citibank before joining Wood Mackenzie. David holds a BSc in Financial and Actuarial Mathematics from Dublin City University and an MSc in Finance from Imperial College London.
Ursula Burns has extensive international experience in leading large companies that are facing technology sea changes within their industries.
Burns was the Chairman of the Board of Xerox Corporation from 2010 to 2017 and Chief Executive Officer from 2009 to 2016, after having been appointed President in 2007. Burns joined Xerox as a summer intern in 1980 and has since held leadership posts spanning corporate services, manufacturing and product development. During Burns’ tenure as Chief Executive Officer, Burns helped the company transform from a global leader in document technology to the world’s most diversified business services company serving enterprises and governments of all sizes. Shortly after being named CEO in 2009, Burns spearheaded the largest acquisition in Xerox history, the $6.4 billion purchase of Affiliated Computer Services.
In 2016, Burns led Xerox through a successful separation into two independent, publicly traded companies – Xerox Corporation, which is comprised of the company’s Document Technology and Document Outsourcing businesses, and Conduent Incorporated, a business process services company. After her retirement from Xerox, Burns was appointed as Chairman of VEON, Ltd. in 2017. Burns became Chairman and CEO in December 2018 until June 2020. During her tenure at VEON, Burns successfully steered the company through various compliance and restructuring changes.
Burns is a member of the Exxon Mobil, Uber Technologies, Inc., Endeavor Group Holdings, Inc., and IHS Holdings Board of Directors. She is also a founding partner of Integrum Holdings, a private equity firm, Non-Executive Chairman of Teneo Holdings LLC, and the Executive Chairman of Plum Acquisition Corp I. In addition, Burns is on several private company boards, while also providing leadership counsel to several other community, educational and non-profit organizations including the Ford Foundation, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Corporation, Cornell Tech Board of Overseers, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Mayo Clinic amongst others.
U.S. President Barack Obama appointed Burns to lead the White House national program on Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) from 2009 - 2016, and Burns served as Chair of the President’s Export Council from 2015 - 2016 after service as Vice Chair from 2010 - 2015. In February 2022, Burns joined the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Advisory Council on Supply Chain Competitiveness as Vice Chair.
Burns holds a master’s degree in mechanical engineering from Columbia University and a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Polytechnic Institute of New York University. Burns is a member of the National Academy of Engineering, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Royal Academy of Engineering and the G7 Gender Equity Advisory Council.
Her book “Where You Are Is Not Who You Are” was published in June 2021.
Bob Moritz is Global Chairman of PwC, which spans 156 countries and includes more than 295,000 people. PwC is a professional services network, providing audit, tax, consulting, and deals services around the world, in order to build trust and drive sustained outcomes for the world’s most pressing problems. In his role, Bob leads the international network’s leadership teams, champions diversity and inclusion, sets strategy, and enhances the brand of PwC through quality service to our stakeholders. Bob is also PwC’s representative with GPPC and other profession-focused organizations.
He has been with PwC his entire career, joining in 1985 and becoming a partner in 1995. He has an Audit and Assurance background, primarily dealing with financial services, banking, and capital markets clients. During the course of his career, Bob spent three years with PwC Japan, working with European and US-based financial services companies operating in Asia. Prior to taking on the global role, Bob led the US firm of PwC as its Chairman and Senior Partner for seven years.
Bob is a member of the International Business Council of the World Economic Forum, a trustee of The Conference Board, a member of the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy, Vice Chair of the International Business Leaders’ Advisory Council (IBLAC) to Shanghai, and a director of the SUNY-Oswego College Foundation, his alma mater. PwC is also a founding member of the UN’s HeforShe 10x10x10 Impact Champions network. Previously, Bob served two terms as the chairman of the Governing Board for the Center for Audit Quality, a non-partisan and non-profit group dedicated to enhancing investor confidence and public trust in the capital markets.
Bob is married and lives in Florida.
Dato’ Feisal is the Managing Director of Khazanah Nasional Berhad (“Khazanah”), Malaysia’s sovereign wealth fund mandated to invest and deliver sustainable value for Malaysians. He is a highly experienced financial executive playing a significant role in shaping a responsible transition towards a more resilient and inclusive future for Malaysia and brings with him over 20 years of insights practicing in key global financial centres.
Prior to joining Khazanah, Dato’ Feisal assumed various senior management roles including Group Chief Financial Officer, Group Head of Global Banking at Maybank and Group Managing Director of Chemical Company of Malaysia. He is also currently the Chairman of Yayasan Khazanah and sits on the Board of Trustees of Yayasan Hasanah and Khazanah Research Institute.
He is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants England and Wales, and a Chartered Banker, Asian Institute of Chartered Bankers. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics majoring in Accounting and Finance from London School of Economics & Political Science and completed the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School.
Peter Chernin is a Co-founder and Partner at TCG. Peter also founded The Chernin Group, LLC in 2010 and serves as its Chairman and CEO. In addition to his investment business, Peter is Chairman and CEO of The North Road Company, a global, multi-genre studio that produces scripted and non-scripted film and TV content.
Prior to founding The Chernin Group, Peter served as President and COO of News Corp and Chairman and CEO of the Fox Group from 1996-2009. During his tenure at Fox and News Corp, Peter oversaw Fox Filmed Entertainment as the #1 studio and greenlit the two highest grossing films of all time – Titanic and Avatar. Notable television hits during Peter’s tenure as CEO of Fox Group include 24, Modern Family, and Glee, which helped 20th Century Fox Television achieve the #1 ranking in television production. He also established Fox Network as the #1 broadcast network across nearly all demos with iconic series including The Simpsons and American Idol. Peter was responsible for launching 15+ cable networks domestically, most notably FX and Fox Sports nets. He also launched 150+ international channels and oversaw the growth of the largest MVPD in the world with Star, Sky, Sky Italia, and DirecTV. With Fox as a co-owner, Peter also launched Hulu.
Peter currently sits on the board of American Express and The North Road Company. He is also a Co-founder and Co-Chairman of Malaria No More, a non-profit dedicated to the global eradication of malaria.
David Calhoun is president and chief executive officer of The Boeing Company. He oversees the strategic direction of the Chicago-based aerospace company, which employs more than 140,000 people worldwide and leverages the talents of a global supplier base. Boeing is the world’s largest aerospace company and leading provider of commercial airplanes; defense, space and security systems; and global services. As a top U.S. exporter, the company supports commercial and government customers in more than 150 countries.
Calhoun, 64, became Boeing president and chief executive in January 2020. He has served as a member of Boeing’s board of directors since 2009 and served as chairman of the company’s board of directors from October to December 2019.
Calhoun has extensive expertise in a wide array of strategic, business, safety and regulatory matters across several industries as a result of his executive, management and operational experience.
Prior to leading Boeing, Calhoun served as senior managing director and head of portfolio operations at The Blackstone Group from January 2014. During his time with the investment firm, he focused on creating and driving added-value initiatives with Blackstone’s portfolio company CEOs.
Previously, he also served as executive chairman of the board for Nielsen Holdings from January 2014 to January 2016. He joined Nielsen in 2006 as chief executive officer shortly after it was acquired through a consortium of private equity investors, including Blackstone. Throughout his seven-year Nielsen tenure, Calhoun led the company’s transformation into a leading global information and measurement firm listed on the New York Stock Exchange and Standard & Poor’s 500 Index.
Calhoun began his career at The General Electric Company (GE), where he rose to vice chairman of the company and president and chief executive officer of GE Infrastructure, its largest business unit. During his 26 years at GE, he held a number of operating, finance and marketing roles, and led multiple business units, including GE Transportation and GE Aircraft Engines.
Calhoun is a member of the board of directors of Caterpillar Inc. and a member of the Business Roundtable, an association of chief executive officers of leading U.S. companies. He also is a member of Virginia Tech’s Pamplin Advisory Council.
A native of Pennsylvania, Calhoun holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Virginia Tech. He is co-author of the book “How Companies Win” and is an avid golfer and skier. He is married with four children.
Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, His Excellency Mr. Akbar Al Baker, is one of the most recognisable figures in the global aviation industry. His vision and commitment enabled the ground-breaking development of Qatar Airways from a small regional carrier into one of the world’s leading global airlines in the span of just 20 years. Today, Qatar Airways flies one of the youngest, most sustainable and state-of-the-art fleets in the skies serving over 130 destinations across six continents.
Under his leadership, Qatar Airways has become one of the world’s most highly-respected airlines, competing on a scale very few airlines achieve. As a result, passengers have recognised the airline’s commitment to the values of safety, security, innovation and quality of service by awarding it the ‘Airline of the Year’ for a record fifth time, ‘World’s Best Business Class’, ‘Best Business Class Seat’ and ‘Best Airline in the Middle East’ at the 2019 World Airline Awards, managed by international air transport rating organisation Skytrax.
Widely known for his ambition and passion for innovation, H.E. Mr. Al Baker introduced the award winning Qsuite in March 2017. Featuring the industry’s first-ever double bed available in Business Class, with privacy panels that stow away, the unique and patented design allows passengers in adjoining seats to create their own private suites. The Qsuite seat layout is a 1-2-1 configuration, providing passengers with the most spacious, fully private, comfortable and social distanced Business Class product in the sky.
He also ensures Qatar Airways leads the way in showcasing the best possible product, with the airline being the proud launch customer of the A350-900 in 2014 and A350-1000 in 2018, as well as being the regional launch customer for the Boeing Dreamliner 787 in 2015.
In August 2017, H.E. Mr. Al Baker was announced as the Chairman of the Board of Governors (BoG) of the prestigious global aviation industry body, the International Air Transport Association (IATA), which came into effect in June 2018 for a period of one year. In November 2017 he was proudly named ‘Aviation Executive of the Year’ by the CAPA Centre for Aviation in recognition of his global influence and visionary approach to the airline industry.
H.E. Mr. Al Baker is also a member of the Executive Committee of the Arab Air Carriers Organisation (AACO) and is a non-executive Director of Heathrow Airport Holdings (HAH) - the company responsible for the running and development of the U.K.’s largest airport. In June 2015, the President of the Republic of France, Francois Hollande, presented H.E. Mr. Al Baker with the Legion of Honour in recognition of his leadership in the aviation industry. 2 In 2019 H.E. Mr. Al Baker was appointed Secretary-General of Qatar’s National Tourism Council (NTC).
A highly motivated individual, H.E. Mr. Al Baker is a successful businessman in Doha and beyond, holds a private pilot license and is also CEO of several divisions of Qatar’s national airline – including Qatar Executive, Hamad International Airport, Qatar Aviation Services, Qatar Aircraft Catering Company, Qatar Distribution Company, Qatar Duty Free and Internal Media Services, to name a few.
Born in Doha, he is a graduate in Economics and Commerce and worked at various levels in the Civil Aviation Directorate before being tasked with creating the world’s best airline in 1997.
Ms. Lam is the Director General of the Investment Promotion Agency of Mauritania (APIM), the Governmental entity in charge of National and Foreign Direct Investments, as well as the business climate of the country.
Through the Agency, Ms. Lam promotes and implements the vision of Mauritania, led by H.E President Mohamed Cheikh Ould Ghazouani, for a sustainable and more inclusive development driven by stronger productive sectors.
Ms. Lam is passionate about youth and women economic empowerment matters on the continent, pertaining to access to finance for start-ups & SMES and enabling the ecosystem for women entrepreneurs. She is the co-founder of the Youth Chamber of Commerce of Mauritania, an organization created with the mission to bridge the gap for young Mauritanian Professionals and Entrepreneurs, mainly through the i-Lab, an Innovation Lab and Venture Fund - launched in partnership with the National Bank of Mauritania.
Moreover, Ms. Lam sits on the monitoring committee of the Covid-19 $290M fund established in 2020 by the Mauritanian President. She is also a member of the advisory councils of the G7 Gender Equality Council and the Middle East Institute and an ambassador for the Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa (AFAWA) initiative led by the African Development Bank.
Ms. Lam is a Tutu fellow and a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader.
Mr. Horvath is the Chief Executive Officer of Orchard Global. Prior to co-founding Orchard Global, Mr. Horvath held leadership roles in credit, structured credit, alternative assets and derivatives at J.P Morgan and Merrill Lynch from 1994 to 2008. Earlier in his career, Mr. Horvath held positions at Bear Stearns and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Mr. Horvath is a Trustee of the Washington National Cathedral and has served on and chaired the Investment Committees for the Washington National Cathedral, the National Cathedral School, and the Protestant Episcopalian Cathedral Foundation. Furthering his philanthropic commitments, Mr. Horvath is the Chairman of the Board of the Hungarian American Institute, is on the Board of Regents of Georgetown University and serves on John’s Hopkins Joint Krieger Advisory Board Executive Committee & Physics and Astronomy Council. He sits on the President’s Council of the National Constitution Center and is a founding Board Member and Treasurer of the American Friends of the Munich Security Conference. Mr. Horvath holds a BS in Economics and International Relations from Georgetown University and has an MBA from Harvard Business School.
Sheikh Mohammed Bin Hamad Bin Faisal Al- Thani is the CEO of Qatar Free Zones Authority (QFZ), which is an independent authority that oversees the development and regulation of a group of world-class free zones in the State of Qatar. QFZ offers outstanding opportunities for businesses seeking to expand their global operations. Sheikh Mohammed executes an ambitious vision built around delivering a seamless experience for QFZ investors and partners.
As CEO, Sheikh Mohammed oversees the Authority's full operations, which include operations in the Ras Bufontas Free Zone adjacent to Hamad International Airport, and Umm Al-Houl Free Zone adjacent to Hamad Port. He also supervises the implementation of the authority's drive to attract foreign direct investment and encourage investors into the free zones in Qatar. This is in addition to the continuous efforts to enhance Qatar's position as a world-class trading hub, while focusing on attracting key business sectors, including; emerging technology, logistics & trading, industrial & consumer, maritime, aerospace & defense, biomedical sciences and food & agritech. So far, QFZ has been successful in attracting a number of the world’s most renowned companies, including DHL, Google Cloud, Microsoft, Thales, among other international companies.
Prior to his appointment as CEO, Sheikh Mohammed was the Deputy CEO & Chief Strategy Officer at QFZ. In this capacity, he executed and led the authority’s wider strategy, while overseeing the enhancement of day-to-day operations and driving optimisation.
Before joining QFZ, Sheikh Mohammed Al-Thani was a founding member of the investment team at the Qatar Foundation Endowment Fund. He also served as a member of the Board of Directors for a number of portfolio companies, including AMLAK Holding, Gulf Bridge International, Qatar Quarries and Building Materials Company. In addition, he was also responsible for the management and oversight of a number of foreign investment funds, managed by best-in-class global fund managers. Sheikh Mohammed began his career at Goldman Sachs, working first in their asset management division and later appointed to the Qatar Foundation Endowment’s Strategy Committee, in partnership with Goldman Sachs.
Sheikh Mohammed Al-Thani was appointed as a member of the Board of Advisors for the Investment Promotion Agency Qatar (Invest Qatar), which is responsible for paving the way for investors in the State of Qatar. Invest Qatar is also the comprehensive and integrated body for investment solutions and services in the State of Qatar. It focuses on achieving the goals of ambitious investors and speeding up their growth in line with Qatar’s FDI strategy and economic development goals.
Sheikh Mohammed Al-Thani holds an Executive Master's degree in Business Administration from HEC Paris in Qatar, and a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from George Washington University. He is also an alumni of the Qatar Leadership Center.
Yousuf Mohamed Al-Jaida was appointed Chief Executive Officer of Qatar Financial Centre (QFC) in June 2015. He previously held the role of Deputy Chief Executive Officer and Chief Strategic Business Development Officer at QFC where he was responsible for leading the overall strategy and business development functions of the organisation.
Prior to joining QFC, he was Head of Indirect Investment at the Qatar General Retirement and Pension Authority, which included overseeing the management of hedge fund, private equity, real estate, fixed income, and equity portfolio investments. He has also worked for Qatar Energy and Dolphin Energy early in his career.
Yousuf serves as board member in leading local and international organisations including the World Alliance of International Financial Centers, the Qatar Financial Centre, the Qatar Finance and Business Academy, the Qatar Free Zones Authority, the Qatar Stock Exchange, the Investment Promotion Agency, and Sidra Medicine.
He is also an advisory board member in the college of Islamic Studies at Hamad Bin Khalifa University , and sits on the Advisory Council of Qatar University’s College of Business and Economics.
Previously, Yousuf was on the boards of Nakilat QSC and the $1 billion strategic investment fund of Unicorn Investment Bank, as well as serving as Vice Chairman of Mayadeen Real Estate Company KSCC. He graduated from the University of Arizona, USA.
Magdalena Rzeczkowska graduated from the Law and Administration Faculty, Warsaw University (1998) and postgraduate studies in European integration at the same University - European Centre (2001). Between 1998-2002, she worked at the Central Office of Customs, and since 2002, has worked at the Ministry of Finance. In 2020, appointed Secretary of State at the Ministry of Finance and the Head of the National Fiscal Administration.
She took an active part in the process of Poland's accession to the European Union, co-creating the Customs Law and implementing regulations. In 2016, she coordinated the implementation of the new EU Customs Code.
For over more than 20 years of professional work, she initiated and coordinated the process of introducing the number of legal and organisational solutions supporting the activities of entrepreneurs involved in the international trade in goods. She was also responsible for the electronic handling of customs – 100% of customs declarations are done electronically. On her initiative, innovative legal solutions were introduced with regard to the mode of conducting proceedings in customs matters. She successfully carried out a reform of customs clearance – implementing the Customs Clearance Centres (CUDO).
Ms. Rzeczkowska was responsible for the introduction of the programme "Customer at the centre of KAS attention", which includes such projects as the e-Tax Office, Auto Return or EUREKA Customs and Fiscal Information System. She carried out the implementation of the e-TOLL electronic road toll collection system.
In April 2022, Magdalena Rzeczkowska was promoted, by the President of the Republic of Poland Andrzej Duda, to the rank of superintendent of the Customs and Fiscal Service in the general corps.
26 April 2022 she was appointed the Minister of Finance.
In the course of her service she was decorated with, inter alia, a bronze badge "Meritorious for the Customs Service" and was awarded the "Medal of 100 years of Independence".
Married, mother of three sons.
H.E. Wamkele Mene was elected by the 33rd Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of States & Government of the African Union, to the position of Secretary-General of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat.
Prior to being elected Secretary-General of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat, he served as Chief Director: Africa Economic Relations, at the Department of Trade & Industry of South Africa. In this role, he was South Africa’s chief trade negotiator in the AfCFTA and Tripartite FTA negotiations. During his tenure as chief negotiator, South Africa ratified both the AfCFTA and Tripartite FTAs agreements.
Prior to assuming this position, H.E. Wamkele Mene occupied the position of Director: International Trade Law & Investment Law at the Department of Trade & Industry, a role in which he was principal legal counsel on international trade law and international investment law.
From 2010 until 2015, H.E. Wamkele Mene represented South Africa at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in Geneva, Switzerland. He was elected to the position of Chairman of the WTO’s Committee on International Trade in Financial Services.
Prior to joining the Department of Trade & Industry of South Africa, H.E. Wamkele Mene worked for Wall Street based law firms in the London and Hong Kong offices.
H.E. Wamkele Mene has written and lectured internationally on international trade law, international investment law and international business law. He holds a Bachelor of Arts (Law) degree from Rhodes University in South Africa, a Master of Arts in International Studies & Diplomacy (with specialization in International Economics) from the School of Oriental & African Studies (SOAS), University of London and a LL.M. (Master of Laws) in Banking Law & Financial Regulation from the Law Department of the London School of Economics & Political Science (LSE).
Zainab Fattah has been covering the Middle East for over a decade with Bloomberg News. As a journalist, she covered some of the region’s biggest news events from the global credit crisis impact on Dubai in 2009 to the Arab Spring that swept much of the region in 2011.
Zainab has written in depth examining the trends changing the face of the Gulf from the drop in oil prices that forced austerity and financial turmoil to the economic boom and the ensuing mega projects.
She has interviewed dozens of ministers, central bank governors and company executives as she wrote stories that connect the dots on the intersection between economy and politics.
Prior to joining Bloomberg, Zainab was chief reporter in 7 Days newspaper in Dubai and before that she covered courts and city government for the Reading Eagle newspaper in Pennsylvania. She has a B.A. in journalism from Kutztown University of Pennsylvania.
Dr. Stuart Schreiber
Co-Founder
The Broad Institute
Morris Loeb Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Biology
Harvard University
Stuart L. Schreiber, Ph.D. is a co-Founder of the Broad Institute, the Morris Loeb Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Biology at Harvard University, and a member of the National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Medicine and American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
Dr. Schreiber’s research integrates chemical biology and human biology to advance both our understanding of chemistry and biology, and the discovery of novel therapeutics. He is known for his use of small molecules to explore biology and medicine, and for his role in the development of the field of chemical biology.
Schreiber’s development of diversity-oriented synthesis has led to the discovery of many promising agents, including a novel mechanism of action anti-malarial agent being developed in collaboration with the pharmaceutical company Eisai (Nature, 2017). His most recent discovery revealed a novel cell state responsible for the ability of cancers to resist a wide range of therapies, and a means to target the cancer therapy-resistant state (Nature, 2017). His research has been reported in over 650 publications (H index = 161; Schreiber Publications) and recognized through numerous awards, most recently the Arthur C. Cope Award and the Wolf Prize in Chemistry.
Schreiber has founded 14 biotechnology companies that use chemical biology to discover novel therapeutics, including cystic fibrosis-focused Vertex Pharmaceuticals in 1989. In 2020, Overall, 17 in-human and first-in-class therapeutics have resulted from these companies. Schreiber co-founded Scientists to Stop COVID-19, a nonpartisan science-based group who advise policy makers regarding the global pandemic in U.S. executive, congressional and state governments, as well as leaders in the sports and entertainment industries.
Tom Cahill, MD, PhD, is the founder and managing partner of Newpath Partners, a Boston-based life science venture firm with a mission to translate groundbreaking scientific discoveries into treatments for patients with a broad range of diseases. Newpath creates and builds most of its portfolio companies at the earliest stage of development, working closely with successful entrepreneurial scientists to align their interests with investors, management teams, and employees. Currently, Dr. Cahill is a director at Chroma Medicine, Exo Therapeutics, Kisbee Therapeutics, Kojin Therapeutics, Magnet Biomedicine, Myeloid Therapeutics, Nvelop Therapeutics, Prime Medicine, Resonance Medicine, and YourBio Health. He is also involved with non-profit and non-partisan groups such as Scientists to Stop COVID-19 (STSC-19) and the Personal Genetics Education Project (pgEd). Dr. Cahill received both his MD and PhD from Duke University.
Stephen Pagliuca
Senior Advisor, Bain Capital Private Equity
Managing General Partner & Co-Owner, Boston Celtics
Steve Pagliuca is a Senior Advisor to Bain Capital Private Equity.
Since joining the firm in 1989, Mr. Pagliuca has played a leading role in a wide spectrum of prominent technology, media, telecommunications and financial services businesses in which Bain Capital Private Equity has made investments.
Prior to joining Bain Capital, Mr. Pagliuca was at Bain & Company where he advised many Fortune 500 companies on business strategy and growth initiatives.
Mr. Pagliuca is a Managing General Partner and co-owner of the Boston Celtics. He is also active in a number of charitable and civic activities. Mr. Pagliuca is President of the Boston Celtics Shamrock Foundation, Chairman of the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (MSPCC) and is a board member of Bain Capital Children's Charity. Mr. Pagliuca is a member of the Harvard Business School Board of Dean’s Advisors. He is also a member of the Duke University Board of Trustees.
Mr. Pagliuca received a B.A. from Duke University and an M.B.A. from the Harvard Business School.
Michael Chambers co-founded Aldevron while a North Dakota State University student pursuing degrees in chemistry, microbiology, and biotechnology. Aldevron grew from a small NDSU lab to the leading supplier to the global genomic medicine sector. Today Aldevron manufactures nucleic acids and recombinant enzymes used to make cell and gene therapies, gene editing products, and vaccines. Michael served as Aldevron’s CEO until 2020, when he moved to the Executive Chairman role. Aldevron was sold to Danaher Corporation in 2021 for $9.6 billion and has recently surpassed 1000associates between its Fargo, ND headquarters and Madison, WI site.
In addition to Aldevron, Michael is an investor, founder, and board member in forwardly minded technology companies including Sarepta Therapeutics, Agathos Bio, Calviri, and Genovac. Michael was named one of the 100 Most Intriguing Entrepreneurs by Goldman Sachs in 2018 and honored as one of the Top 25 Biotech CEOs of 2021 by Healthcare Technology Report. Michael is a board member of M.I.T’s Whitehead Institute, and currently works with game changers in the space of AI. Michael lives with his wife and five daughters, splitting time between Fargo and Boston.
Jeff Koons exhibited a passion for art at an early age. When he was nine, his father Henry, an interior designer, placed Old Master paintings that Koons had copied in the window of his furniture store to promote his son’s artwork.
Koons went to Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore and through a student mobility program studied at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago under Ed Paschke, whose technicolor renderings of superheroes and other pop icons were an early source of inspiration. Koons received a BFA from Maryland Institute of College of Art in 1976.
After moving to New York City in the beginning of 1977, Koons’s first job was at the Museum of Modern Art, where he worked several years until he began working as a Wall Street commodities broker to support his studio practice. His first major works invoked commodity fetishism: titled The New, they comprised vacuum cleaners displayed on or in Plexiglas boxes over grids of fluorescent light. Exhibited for the first time in the window of the New Museum in New York in 1980, they were glossy reliquaries of American consumer culture that cemented Koons’s reputation as a rigorously conceptual artist.
In 1983, Koons began the Equilibrium series, suspending basketballs in aquarium tanks filled with water. Working with Nobel Prize-winning physicist Richard Feynman, he devised a precise mixture of water and salt that would make the balls float in the middle of the tanks, as if suspended. Koons’s interest in buoyancy was always within his inflatables, which would soon vault him to stratospheric fame: taking air-filled vinyl toys and casting them in polished stainless steel, he once again transformed a cheaply manufactured commodity into a precious object, capable of reflecting a viewer’s desiring gaze. Over time, these sculptures grew in scale, from the modestly-sized Rabbit (1986) to the monumental Balloon Dog (1994–2000). In 2007, Rabbit floated more than 50 feet over New York’s Fifth Avenue, reimagined as a gigantic helium-filled balloon in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
In the mid-1980s, Koons cast for the first time sculptures in stainless steel, including the Jim Beam – J.B. Turner Train that was a liquor decanter set filled with Jim Beam bourbon and Kiepenkerl, a life-sized statue of a 17th-century traveling merchant, which Koons created for the 1987 edition of Skulptur Projekte Münster. For the Banality series, Koons changed his materials. He collaborated with workshops in Germany and Italy to produce larger-than-life-sized sculptures in porcelain and wood inspired by banal and dislocated images that we are surrounded by in our lives. Several of these sculptures, polychromed in bright colors, represented American pop icons such as Buster Keaton and Michael Jackson, cradling his chimpanzee Bubbles. Rendered to scale, they are simultaneously exuberant and unsettling.
Koons’s combining of rococo fantasy and pop kitsch reached its apotheosis in Made in Heaven (1989–91), a series of sculptures and paintings. The works were sensationally controversial for their graphic content and bold transgression of social norms. After Made in Heaven, Koons made his world-renowned Puppy sculpture made out of 60,000 live flowering plants, which was a continuation on the Baroque and Rococo tradition.
Inspired by the cycles of life within a calendar year, Koons embarked on the Celebration series in 1994, his most ambitious and technologically demanding work yet. While completing the complex Celebration sculptures, Koons turned his attention to oil painting, a medium in which he has continued to work ever since. In the Easyfun and Easyfun-Ethereal series, culling images from magazines and product packaging, particularly those involving food and sex, Koons used computer software to create densely layered digital collages that he then transferred to canvas by hand in compositions. His engagement with pop culture extended to comic book characters, inflatable pool toys, and everyday life in the series Popeye (2002–13) and Hulk Elvis (2004–21).
Most recently, Koons has returned to the art of classical antiquity and the Renaissance. His Venus sculptures from the Antiquity series (2008–) in mirror-polished stainless steel, invoke the goddess of love and beauty–themes that recur throughout his work—while using mass-produced figurines as models. Koons’s Gazing Ball series (2012–21) embeds mirrored orbs into reproductions of Old Master paintings, offering viewers a chance to experience a metaphysical state within time and space contained within these great works of art and our relationship to them and the artist.
Walter C. Johnsen, Chairman and CEO of Acme United Corporation, joined as a board member and became CEO in 1995. He transformed the company from a small manufacturer of scissors and shears to the largest in the world. Acme diversified through acquisitions into first aid and safety and is one of the leading suppliers in North America. He concentrated on global sourcing in China, Taiwan, Malaysia, India, Colombia, Portugal, Italy, Germany, and Egypt to achieve competitive global costs.
In 1986, Mr. Johnsen and a partner acquired Marshall Electronics, a small manufacturer of blood pressure units and stethoscopes. They built the company through product innovation and sourcing in Korea, Japan, and China to become the largest supplier in North America. Marshall Products was acquired by Omron Corporation, and became the base of their U.S. medical supply operations.
He ran the private equity operations of Smith Barney, Harris Upham in San Francisco from 1981 to 1985. Among his investments was an early venture capital investment in Apple Computer.
Mr. Johnsen has B.S. and M.Eng. degrees from Cornell University and an MBA from Columbia University.
Jai Shroff is the Global CEO of UPL Limited. He is a well-recognized global leader in sustainable agricultural development and across agribusiness, with over 30 years’ experience in India and internationally.
UPL is the fifth largest agricultural solutions company worldwide and is focused on strengthening food security in over 130 countries by offering world class technologies and solutions for sustainable agriculture production. Under Jai's leadership, UPL has been one of the fastest growing agri-input companies in the world with strong presence in the Seeds, Plant Nutrition, Crop protection, BioSolutions, and Post harvest food preservation value chains.
Jai has driven the transformation of UPL from a largely domestic player to a truly global multinational. Today, UPL has a global workforce comprising of more than 25 different nationalities. It operates 35 manufacturing plants in India, Asia, Europe, Latin and North America and serve the farming community across the globe.
Jai's vision for UPL is to endeavor to continually provide smart, affordable and profitable solutions to the global farming community with a strong focus on Innovation, Research and Excellence by "Reimagining Sustainability” for farms, farmers and food systems worldwide.
Jai believes in the power of collaboration and inter-sectoral partnerships. He is actively involved in the global development agenda, including the World Economic Forum's Grow Africa and Grow Asia initiatives, IFPRI's Sustainable Agriculture and Global Food Security Initiative, WBCSD, Chicago Council, IGD and ICAR.
Stuart serves as the Senior Vice President of the Global Supply Chain, Logistics & Planning organization. Stuart drives the strategic agenda for the Logistics & Planning organization where we have made significant investments that have yielded positive returns for Schneider’s Global Supply Chain and our company.
In this capacity, he and his team are focused on transforming Schneider’s delivery platform from a “One Size Fits All” approach to a fully optimized Customer Aligned platform that is digitally capable of sensing, predicting and responding to multiple events and customer demands.
A British national, Stuart is married with three children. Stuart is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport and holds a Global MSc. in Logistics and Supply Chain Management from Cranfield University’s School of Management.
Stuart currently sits on the advisory boards of The Global Fund, Singapore Institute of Purchasing & Materials Management and Leeds University Business School in the UK. Other affiliations include, but are not limited to Maersk’s Strategic Customer Council too.
Ms. Rita Huang Zhen is an accomplished entrepreneur, businesswoman, and engineer who has made significant contributions to the Middle East's logistics and e-commerce industry. She is the Founder and CEO of iMile Delivery, which is a leading logistics and last-mile delivery service provider in the region.
Ms. Huang Zhen holds a degree in BioMedical Engineering from the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, which has given her a solid foundation in the engineering field. She began her career at the Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei in 2008, where she gained valuable experience in the tech industry.
In 2015, Ms. Huang Zhen joined the Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba, where she was appointed as the CTO of their joint venture in the Middle East. She was responsible for building the first public cloud computing center in Dubai, which helped to establish Alibaba's presence in the region.
In 2017, Ms. Huang Zhen founded iMile Delivery, which has since become a significant player in the logistics and last-mile delivery industry in the Middle East. Under her leadership, the company has experienced rapid growth and has expanded its operations to multiple countries in the region.
Ms. Huang Zhen’s unconventional vision and entrepreneurial spirit have helped to establish her as a respected figure in the Middle East business community. Her expertise in logistics, e-commerce, and technology has enabled her to build a successful company that is making a positive impact on the region's economy.
H.E. Sultan Bin Rashid Al-Khater
Undersecretary, Ministry of Commerce and Industry
State of Qatar
H.E. Sultan Bin Rashid Al-Khater was assigned as Undersecretary in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry by the Emiri decree No. 50 of 2011.
H.E. Sultan Bin Rashid Al-Khater had previously held many leadership positions in the sectors of Energy and Industry, the last one of them was the General Manager and Board Member in Qatar Fuel Additives Company, Ltd. Al-Khater had also held many other positions before, including the Maintenance Director for Liquefied Natural Gas facilities, and Director of Strategic Planning in RasGas Company, and has considerable sixteen years of experience in the Gas Industry.
H.E. Al-Khater holds MBR degree from SBS Swiss Business School in 2019, Executive MBA from HEC-Paris in Qatar in 2012 and a BS in Mechanical Engineering with honors from Qatar University in 1996.
H.E. Al-Khater also hold representation and membership on the following bodies:
Board of Directors member for Qatar Central Bank
Board of Directors member for Qatar Leadership Center Board of Directors member for The Social and Sport
Contribution Fund
Board member for Qatar Leadership Academy
Hon. Moses Kiarie Kuria HSC
Cabinet Secretary for Investments, Trade and Industry
Republic of Kenya
During three decades of service in the public and private sectors, Mr. Kuria has made significant contributions to Kenya’s economic development. In two terms as elected Member of Parliament for Gatundu South, he served on committees including Budget and Appropriations; Public Works and Housing; and as vice chair, Transport, Infrastructure, Public Works and Housing. He was also a member of the Bicameral and Bipartisan Committee on Electoral Reforms. He founded Africa Diaspora Asset Managers, a fund management company, and served as Chief Operations Officer for Wamad Information Technology & Consulting Group, Saudi Arabia.
Dr. Uzziel NDAGIJIMANA is the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning in the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MINECOFIN) since April 2018
He served as Minister of State in Charge of Economic Planning (MINECOFIN) from July 2014 up to April 2018 before his appointment as full Minister of Finance and Economic Planning.
Before joining the MINECOFIN, Dr. Uzziel NDAGIJIMANA was the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Health, Republic of Rwanda from May 2011 to July 2014.
Dr. Uzziel NDAGIJIMANA served at different leadership positions as the Vice Rector of the National University of Rwanda from (2007-2011), and as the Rector of School of Finance and Banking in Kigali, Rwanda (2002-2007).
Dr. Uzziel NDAGIJIMANA is an Economist, holding a PhD in Economics (1998) from the University of Warsaw and a MSc. Economics, with specialisation in International Trade from Warsaw School of Economics (1992). He started his career as a Lecturer at the National University of Rwanda in 1999, Faculty of Economics, Social Sciences, and Management, before he moved to leadership positions of the Government of Rwanda from 2002. He is an author of papers in national and international journals. He speaks Kinyarwanda, French, English, Swahili, Polish, and basic Portuguese.
Dr. Uzziel NDAGIJIMANA also served on various Boards and Councils, including:
- Board of Directors of the National Bank of Rwanda
- Board of Directors of the National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda
- Board of Directors of the Student Financing Agency for Rwanda
- Board of Directors of School of Finance and Banking
- Board of Directors of National University of Rwanda
- Chairman of Economic Advisory Council of the President of the Republic of Rwanda
- Chairman of the Audit Committee of the Inter-University Council for East Africa
Abeer has been with Bloomberg News based in Dubai since 2018 and currently covers government and economic affairs across the Middle East. She focuses on Gulf Cooperation Council economies including Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar and has written stories about the latest economic and political trends while interviewing some of the region's top officials.
Sandrine Nzeukou is a dynamic entrepreneur, ecosystem developer and former professional athlete who has made her mark in the worlds of finance and sports. A member of the Class of 2020’s Most Influential People of African Descent, and Founder and CEO of Tessa, a sports business intelligence platform providing media, insights, and marketing, Sandrine is passionate about the revolutionary potential of the African continent. Having partnered with esteemed organizations like Forbes and the National Basketball Players’ Association, world-class athletes including former 2x UFC Heavyweight Champion Francis Ngannou and NBA Allstar Pascal Siakam, as well as several African governments and Development Finance Institutions, Sandrine seeks to accelerate sustainability-focused growth in Africa’s frontier and emerging sports markets.
With experience spanning ecosystem and business development, investment, innovation and social impact, Sandrine supported Invest Africa US in driving over $3 billion worth of capital flow into Africa. In her role as the organization’s first executive director, she drove the strategic vision of the organization and connected Invest Africa's global network of private equity firms, venture capital firms, family offices, Ultra High Net Worth individuals and business leaders leveraging the network's intentional convening power.
In addition to her professional accomplishments, Sandrine represented her home country of Cameroon in the 2011 and 2015’s FIBA Olympic qualifying tournaments in Mali and Cameroon and sits on the board of the #1 African sports media platform, Afroballers.
Sandrine holds an MBA in Management and a B.S. in Marketing from the University of Nevada Las Vegas.
Alex is a serial web entrepreneur with more than 27 years experience in the digital space, building and developing tech businesses. In the late 1990s, he pioneered Webcity, the web-based interactive tourism guide. After co-founding Winamax (the largest French online poker room) and Chilipoker in 2006, the underpinning technology platform was sold to Bally Technologies (now Scientific Games).
In 2012, he formed Mediarex Sports & Entertainment, and in 2013 acquired the Global Poker Index (live Poker’s leading ranking authority) as well as The Hendon Mob (the largest live poker database in the world). Chiliz was formed in 2018, when the official whitepaper was published, with the mission of becoming the global blockchain leader for Web3 sports and entertainment. In the same year and as part of the project, Socios.com was launched, the world’s first Fan Token powered, fan engagement and rewards platform.
By mid 2018, $66 million had been raised through private placement and Socios.com - the world’s first fan engagement and rewards platform for sports organisations - was born.
Paris Saint Germain and Juventus quickly became the first partners, creating a global presence and profile for the Socios.com brand from the start.
Today, Socios.com is an official partner to over 160+ organisations across nine sport verticals and 25 different countries. Major sporting organisations, including the likes of FC Barcelona, Juventus, AC Milan, Paris Saint-Germain, Valencia CF, Atletico Madrid, Manchester City, Inter Milan, Arsenal, Flamengo, Corinthians, River Plate and the national teams of Italy, Portugal and Argentina have launched their official Fan Tokens on Socios.com.
So have mixed martial arts (MMA) brands UFC and PFL, the Davis Cup, leading Formula 1 teams, esports clubs and many more. Other Socios.com partners include LaLiga, Lega Serie A, UEFA and nearly 70 NBA, NFL, NHL and MLS franchises.
In late 2022, Chiliz announced the launch of Gameused.com, a new, end to end memorabilia authentication service for sports and entertainment, delivering storage, NFC and NFT authentication, redemption and resale. Chiliz will soon open its ecosystem to a far wider audience with the launch of the new Chiliz Blockchain. Chiliz Blockchain will lead to greater adoption of blockchain tech across sports and entertainment with brands invited to build Fan Tokens, NFTs and other digital assets with all fees paid in Chiliz native token $CHZ.
Chiliz has over 300 employees and regional headquarters in Miami, Madrid, Malta, London, Istanbul, Milan, São Paulo and Switzerland.
Donn Davis is Chairman and Founder of the Professional Fighters League and Founding Partner of Revolution. He is a proven investor, entrepreneur, and company-builder in media, digital, gaming, and sports.
Together with Steve Case, he co-founded Revolution in 2005, a Washington DC based venture capital firm with $1.5 billion under management. Donn served as Managing Partner of the Revolution Growth funds, investing in disruptive media, digital, gaming, and sports companies such as DraftKings, Sportradar, CustomInk, BigCommerce, and Scopely.
Donn is co-owner of Team Liquid, the most winning e-sports team in history and two-time ESPN e-sports Team of the Year. Previously, Donnserved as Chairman and CEO of Exclusive Resorts, building the pioneering sharing economy company from start-up to market leader with over $1 billion of vacation home assets. Donn was a senior executive at America Online during the formative period of the consumer internet, including serving as the President/COO of the AOL Interactive Properties Group, where he managed 7 hyper-growth internet businesses and 1,000-person team. Donn was also the youngest member of the company-wide Operating Committee when AOL was a Fortune 50 Company.
Prior to AOL, Donn was the Founder and President of Tribune Ventures where he led numerous investments in “Internet 1.0” winners. He also served as Senior Counsel at Tribune Company, responsible for M&A, financing, and strategic partnerships in the broadcast, publishing, and entertainment groups. At age 29, Donn was named Chief Counsel to the beloved Chicago Cubs Baseball Team, where he was the youngest team attorney in Major League Baseball.
In 2019, the Tampa community elected Jane Castor to serve as the city’s 59th Mayor. This longtime public servant and former Tampa Police Chief remains laser-focused on her vision for “Transforming Tampa’s Tomorrow”—a five-pillar strategic plan centered around strengthening community-centric services, enhancing workforce development, increasing housing affordability, improving transportation, and fostering sustainability and resilience.
Under Mayor Jane Castor’s visionary leadership, her administration passed the most extensive water/wastewater infrastructure plan in the city’s history, in addition to the first budget starting in the black since the great recession. Her key achievements within the past two years also include helping secure more than $90 million for transportation and mobility improvements, hiring the City’s first Sustainability and Resilience Officer, and launching various strategic initiatives to support prosperous and equitable job growth, economic developments, and housing opportunities.
Under her leadership, the City of Tampa has received several awards and recognitions. In 2019, Tampa Bay was recognized amongst the top areas for women-owned business growth. One of the top 10 best metro areas for startups, the best small tech market in North America, 5th best city for recreation, the best city in Florida, 23rd amongst large US Cities, best city for veterans to live in, and one of the most fun cities in America.
Born and raised in Tampa, Florida, Jane graduated from Chamberlain High School and attended the University of Tampa on an athletic scholarship.
Daniel Marti is the Head of Public Affairs and Global Policy at Tencent, where he also serves as a member of the Tencent Americas Management Committee and as the Executive Sponsor of the DEI Council. Mr. Marti also serves on various boards, including as Chairman at Ironhide Studios (Montevideo); a Director at Tequila Works (Madrid); and as a Board Observer at Funcom (Oslo). Mr. Marti has enjoyed a long career in both public and private service dedicated to IP and innovation policy. Mr. Marti served at the White House as President Obama’s “IP Czar” and was sworn into office by then-Vice President Biden. Earlier, Mr. Marti served as Head of Global Government Affairs at London-based RELX; Vice Chairman of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Global Innovation Policy Center; and as Managing Partner of the Washington, D.C. office of Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton.
Nasser Fahad Al Khater is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 LLC, the innovative joint venture between the State of Qatar and FIFA that was launched in early 2019. He is also a senior adviser to the Secretary General’s Office of the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy (SC). He was responsible for leading all aspects of the planning and delivery of a historic tournament – the first to be held in the Middle East and Arab world – that welcomed over 1.4 million fans to Qatar.
In his role as CEO, Al Khater was charged with combining the extensive planning expertise Qatar built up since winning the hosting rights in 2010 with FIFA’s global tournament expertise to ensure an extraordinary FIFA World Cup™ experience for all fans, players and officials.
He was appointed to the Qatar 2022 Bid Committee in 2009, where he oversaw the media and the marketing campaigns that led to Qatar's successful bid to bring the FIFA World Cup™ to the Arab world for the first time. Al Khater also held the titles of Chief of Experience and Tournament Readiness, Assistant Secretary General, Tournament Affairs, and Executive Director of Marketing and Communications at the SC.
Before joining the Bid Committee in 2009, Al Khater worked with Qatari Government agencies to establish development strategies for small and medium size enterprises (SMEs) and on national leadership development programmes, which led to the establishment of Enterprise Qatar and the Qatar Leadership Centre.
Al Khater also has over five years’ experience in the Oil & Gas industry, having led Qatar Shell’s Intalaqa programme - an initiative aimed at fostering entrepreneurship for young Qatari nationals. This followed a five-year career working for the international finance giant HSBC.
Al Khater is a graduate of Suffolk University in Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
Eric L. Johnson is the 60th Mayor of Dallas, Texas. First elected in June 2019, he was re-elected in May 2023 with 93% of the vote, breaking a 114-year old record for the highest vote percentage garnered by a mayoral candidate facing any opposition in Dallas history. Prior to becoming mayor, Johnson served as a member of the Texas House of Representatives, where he represented the City of Dallas from April 2010 to June 2019. During his tenure in the Texas Legislature, Johnson served on several legislative committees, including Appropriations, Ways and Means, Higher Education, and Natural Resources. He also served as chairman of the Dallas Area Legislative Delegation. In addition to his service as Mayor of Dallas, Johnson is also a partner with the international law firm of Locke Lord LLP.
Johnson was born in Dallas and attended Dallas Independent School District schools through first grade before earning a scholarship to Greenhill School through the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Dallas. He attended Harvard College, where he graduated cum laude with a degree in History. Johnson also holds a law degree from the University of Pennsylvania Law School and a master's degree in Public Affairs from the School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University. He is an alumnus of Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government’s Senior Executives in State and Local Government program and is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.
Mayor Johnson lives in Dallas with his wife, Nikki, their three children, William, George, and Lela, and their dog, Penny. He is a member of the Mountain View Church of Christ.
Manoj Badale OBE is the Chairman of the Rajasthan Royals, the IPL team representing Jaipur, Rajasthan. Manoj co-founded the Rajasthan Royals in 2008, at the inception of the IPL. Since then, Manoj has been instrumental in driving the growth of the team as Chairman and lead-owner. In recent years, Manoj has developed a portfolio of synergistic cricket franchises with the addition of the Barbados Royals and Paarl Royals. Prior to the Royals, Manoj was an investor in Leicestershire County Cricket Club and pioneered an innovative cricket-based reality show named Cricket Star.
Beyond sports, Manoj is the co-founder and managing partner of Blenheim Chalcot. Manoj was formerly a partner at Monitor Company and went on to co-found the Netdecisions Group with Charles Mindenhall, which later became Blenheim Chalcot. Until 2022, Manoj was the Chairman of HRH The Prince of Wales' British Asian Trust. He was also Chairman of Operation Smile UK for over ten years, and a founding Trustee of the Technology Trust. Manoj has an MA in economics from Emmanuel College, Cambridge University.
Prior to his position as Bloomberg’s Head of the Middle East & North Africa in Dubai, Stuart was the News Director for Europe, Middle East, and Africa from 2020 to 2023, and Managing Editor of Global Energy and Commodities from 2015 to 2019.
Since joining Bloomberg in 2000, Livingstone-Wallace has served as a reporter, editor, team leader for EMEA commodity markets, managing editor for global commodity markets and global energy and commodity markets and executive editor for global energy and commodities.
Previously, he was a reporter and editor at AFP.
Livingstone-Wallace has a B.A. from the University of Liverpool and a postgraduate diploma from City University of London.
Sheikh Hasina assumed the office of Prime Minister of Bangladesh for the fourth time on 7 January 2019 after her party, Bangladesh Awami League, won landslide victory in the parliamentary elections held on the 30th December 2018.
Her first term as Prime Minister was between 1996 and 2001, the second between 2009 and 2014 and the third term from 2014 to 2018.
Sheikh Hasina was the leader of the opposition in the parliament during 1986–1988, 1991–1996 and 2001–2006.
She is the eldest among 5 children of founding Father of Bangladesh, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Sheikh Hasina was born on 28 September 1947 at Tungipara in Gopalganj district.
Sheikh Hasina has been in politics since her student days. She was elected Vice-President of the College Students’ Union in 1966.
In 1981 while in exile, Bangladesh Awami League made Sheikh Hasina president of the party. Ending 6 years of her refugee life since her father and founder of Bangladesh was assassinated along with most of the family members, she returned home on the 17th May in 1981. She was instrumental in establishing democracy in the country.
She faced huge adversaries from her political opponents. At least 19 attempts were made on her life, the gravest one on the 21st August in 2004, when over a dozen Arges grenades were hurled on her at a public rally in Dhaka. She survived the attack but 22 of her party leaders and activists were killed and over 500 wounded.
A number of famous universities and institutions across the world have conferred on Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina various degrees and awards in recognition of her contribution to peace building, upholding of democracy and socioeconomic development.
Among the prestigious ones include ‘SERES Medal’ by FAO and ‘Champion of the Earth 2015’ by UNEP.
Sheikh Hasina is associated with a number philanthropic organisations. She has authored several books.
Irakli Garibashvili is the Prime Minister of Georgia and he has been holding the office since February 22, 2021. Before assuming the office of the Prime Minister, Mr. Garibashvili has served as the Minister of Defence of Georgia from September 8, 2019 until February 22, 2021.
Mr. Garibashvili has an extensive experience in Private Sector as well as in the Public Service. Before becoming one of the founding members of Georgian Dream Political Party he served as the Chairman of the Board of International Charitable Foundation Cartu and was member of the Supervisory Board of Cartu Bank.
Garibashvili took office of the Minister of Internal Affairs of Georgia in October 25, 2012 and served his tenure until November 17, 2013. During November 20, 2013 and December 24, 2015 Garibashvili served as the Prime Minister of Georgia.
After the period of being in private sector from February 12, 2018 until August 1, 2019 Irakli Garibashvili moved back to politics and has been the Political Secretary and Member of Political Council of the Political Party “Georgian Dream – Democratic Georgia” since March 5, 2019.
In 2005 Garibashvili received his Master’s Degree in International Relations from the Tbilisi State University, Faculty of International Law and International Relations. Prior to his graduation, from 2002 until 2004 Garibashvili attended the Sorbonne University, Paris France, Faculty of Political Science, majoring in International Relations.
Irakli Garibashvili speaks fluent Georgian, English, French and Russian.
Manus Cranny is a U.A.E.-based anchor for Bloomberg Television. He currently co-anchors “Bloomberg Daybreak: Middle East” with Yousef Gamal El-Din, the prime-time weekday morning show focusing on the cross-section between the region’s politics, markets, economies and companies. He also co-anchors “Bloomberg Daybreak: Europe” with Anna Edwards in London.
Cranny has more than 30 years of business, finance and news experience. He joined Bloomberg Television in 2010 as an anchor and European markets editor, having previously covered equity, commodity and Forex markets as a broker and salesperson. He now reports on international equities, bonds, commodities, Forex trading and up-to-the-minute business news from around the world.
Cranny has also interviewed a wide range of prominent business, finance and political figures, including Egyptian Finance Minister, Amr El Garhy; U.A.E. Central Bank Governor, Mubarak Rashed Al Mansoori; U.A.E. Minister of Energy, Suhail Al Mazrouei; Technology Adviser and Co-Founder of Microsoft Corp., Bill Gates; Founder Virgin Group, Richard Branson; Former President, Republic of France, Francois Holland; Group CEO UBS, Sergio Ermotti; CEO and Executive Director RBS, Ross McEwan; and CEO Barclays, Jess Staley to name a few.
Cranny began his career in boutique fund management for high-net-worth investors and went on to become a London-based institutional broker at First Chicago Bank (now part of JP Morgan Chase), covering futures, options, derivatives and bonds for institutional investors in the Middle East. He also worked as head of sales at MF Global's Private Client division in London and head of sales at Cantor Index, part of Cantor Fitzgerald L.P.
Cranny received a Bachelor of Science degree in Management from Queen’s University Belfast.
HE Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is the 5th President of Ghana’s 4th Republic, and was sworn into office for a second term on 7th January, 2021.
He has been a prominent champion of human rights, rule of law, justice, freedom, and democracy in Ghana. Indeed, as a lawyer, he undertook many of the most important constitutional cases of the modern era in Ghana, which, inter alia, protected the independence of the judiciary, the right of the citizen to demonstrate without police permit, and the right of equal access of all political parties to the State-owned media.
Nana Akufo-Addo has held numerous positions, and played various active roles in the public life of Ghana. He was a three term Member of Parliament from 1997 to 2008. He served as Attorney General and Minister for Justice (2001-2003), and as Minister for Foreign Affairs from April 2003 to July 2007, both under the government of the former President of the Republic of Ghana, HE John Agyekum Kufuor.
On 23rd December, 2007, he was elected as the New Patriotic Party's presidential candidate. In the 2008 presidential election, Akufo-Addo led in the first round of voting, but failed to obtain the required 50%+1, pushing the election into a second round runoff between him and the National Democratic Congress candidate, the late John Evans Atta Mills, who eventually won with 50.23% as against Akufo-Addo’s 49.77% vote.
In 2010, he was elected presidential candidate of the NPP, but, again, lost the 2012 election marginally to the incumbent, the then President John Dramani Mahama. The NPP challenged the results of the election through a petition at the Supreme Court, losing by a 5-4 verdict. Akufo-Addo immediately accepted the decision, congratulated President Mahama, and called upon all NPP supporters to accept the decision, even though he and they all disagreed with it.
This act of statesmanship culminated in the African Union, the European Union, the United Nations, the United States of America, the Christian Council of Ghana and the Chief Imam of Ghana, amongst others, applauding Akufo-Addo for preserving Ghana’s peace, and maintaining Ghana’s status as a beacon of democracy in Africa.
Nana Akufo-Addo was, on 18th October, 2014, re-elected to lead the NPP into the 2016 general elections. He won the presidential election, after defeating the incumbent, President John Dramani Mahama. He obtained 53.85% of the total valid votes cast, as announced by the Electoral Commission, with 44.40% for the losing incumbent.
He was re-elected as President of the Republic in the 7th December 2020 election, for a second term in office, having obtained 51.3% of the popular vote, defeating, for the second time, his challenger, John Dramani Mahama, former President of the Republic and NDC presidential candidate.
General David H. Petraeus (US Army, Ret.) is a Partner in the global investment firm KKR and Chairman of the KKR Global Institute, which he established in mid-2013. He is also a member of the boards of Optiv and OneStream, a Strategic Advisor for Semperis, the Chairman of the International Advisory Board for Advanced Navigation, a personal venture investor, engaged in various academic endeavors, and co-author with Andrew Roberts of the forthcoming book titled Conflict: The Evolution of Warfare from 1945 to Ukraine.
Prior to joining KKR, General Petraeus served over 37 years in the U.S. military, culminating his career with six consecutive commands as a general officer, five of which were in combat, including command of the Surge in Iraq, command of U.S. Central Command, and command of Coalition Forces in Afghanistan. Following retirement from the military, and after confirmation by the Senate in a vote of 94-0, he served as the Director of the CIA during a period of significant achievements in the war on terror.
General Petraeus graduated with distinction from the US Military Academy and later earned a Ph.D. from Princeton University. He is the only individual to have been the top graduate of both the year-long Command and General Staff College Course and the demanding US Army Ranger School. He has held academic appointments with the US Military Academy, the University of Southern California, Harvard, Georgetown, and the City University of New York Honors College, and he is currently a Senior Fellow and Lecturer at Yale, an Honorary Professor at the University of Birmingham (UK), a member of both the Trilateral Commission and the Aspen Strategy Group, Co-Chairman of the Global Advisory Council of the Woodrow Wilson Center, Senior Vice President of the Royal United Services Institute, and an Executive Advisory Board Member of World.Minds.
Over the past 15 years, General Petraeus has been named one of America’s 25 Best Leaders by U.S. News and World Report, a runner-up for Time magazine’s Person of the Year, the Daily Telegraph Man of the Year, twice a Time 100 selectee, Princeton University’s Madison Medalist, Prospect Magazine’s Public Intellectual of the Year, three times one of Foreign Policy magazine’s top 100 public intellectuals, and a LinkedIn Top Voice.
General Petraeus has earned numerous awards and decorations, including four Defense Distinguished Service Medals, the Secretary of State’s Distinguished Service Award, the Bronze Star Medal for Valor, two NATO Meritorious Service Medals, the Combat Action Badge, Master Parachutist Wings, and the Ranger Tab. He has also been decorated by 14 foreign countries and sanctioned by Russia, and he is believed to be the only person who, while in uniform, threw out the first pitch of a baseball World Series Game and did the coin toss at a Super Bowl.
Nouriel Roubini
Professor Emeritus of Economics & International Business
New York University's Stern School of Business
Nouriel Roubini is CEO of Roubini Macro Associates, LLC, a global macroeconomic consultancy firm in New York. He is also Chief Economist for Atlas Capital Team LP, as well as Co-Founder of Rosa & Roubini Associates. At a 2006 address to the International Monetary Fund, Roubini warned of the impending recession due to the credit and housing market bubble. His predictions of these upside-down balance sheets became a reality in 2008, with the bubble bursting and reverberating around the world into a global financial crisis lasting well into the next decade.
Dr. Roubini has extensive policy experience as well as broad academic credentials. He is Professor Emeritus (2021-present), Professor of Economics (1995-2021), Stern School of Business, New York University. He was Co- Founder and Chairman of Roubini Global Economics from 2005 to 2016 – a firm whose website was named one of the best economics web resources by BusinessWeek, Forbes, the Wall Street Journal and the Economist. From 1998 to 2000, he served as the senior economist for international affairs on the White House Council of Economic Advisors and then the senior advisor to the undersecretary for international affairs at the U.S. Treasury Department, helping to resolve the Asian and global financial crises, among other issues. The International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and numerous other prominent public and private institutions have drawn upon his consulting expertise.
He has published numerous theoretical, empirical and policy papers on international macroeconomic issues and coauthored the books “Political Cycles: Theory and Evidence” (MIT Press, 1997) and “Bailouts or Bail-ins? Responding to Financial Crises in Emerging Markets” (Institute for International Economics, 2004) and “Crisis Economics: A Crash Course in the Future of Finance” (Penguin Press, 2010). Dr. Roubini’s views on global economic issues are widely cited by the media, and he is a frequent commentator on various business news programs. He has been the subject of extended profiles in the New York Times Magazine, The Financial Times, among other leading current-affairs publications. He is published monthly as a columnist with Project Syndicate. He also hosts www.NourielToday.com where is perspectives can be found and co-runs the site www.theboombust.com, an economic indicator research service.
Dr. Roubini received an undergraduate degree at Bocconi University in Milan, Italy, and a doctorate in economics at Harvard University. Prior to joining Stern, he was on the faculty of Yale University’s department of economics.
H.E. Sheikh Bandar bin Mohammed bin Saoud Al-Thani
Governor
Qatar Central Bank
Chairman
Qatar Investment Authority
His Excellency Sheikh Bandar bin Mohammed bin Saoud Al-Thani is the present Governor of Qatar Central Bank. He assumed this responsibility in November 2021.
Born in Qatar in 1977, he completed his Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from the prestigious American University in the USA, with a major in Finance. Thereafter, he completed his Executive Masters of Business Administration from HEC Paris, at their centre in Doha.
His Excellency spent the major part of his career in the financial sector and held various key positions. H.E. started his career in Qatar Central Bank in 2002 when he joined the Banking Supervision Department, and joined the Investment Department as the head for the dealing room. In addition to these responsibilities, he was a member of Qatar Executive Committee for SMEs representing Qatar Central Bank.
In 2008, His Excellency was assigned the responsibility to establish Qatar Credit Bureau, and shortly thereafter, he was appointed as the Executive Director of Qatar Credit Bureau in 2009. The vision behind establishing the Bureau was to develop a resilient banking system that is capable of detecting financial risks and vulnerabilities through the provision of accurate and comprehensive credit information, leveraging on state-of-the-art technology.
In addition to his role as Executive Director, His Excellency was assigned as Acting Director for the Risk Management of Qatar Central Bank on July 1st, 2014.
In 2015, His Highness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, the Emir of the State of Qatar, appointed His Excellency as the President of the State Audit Bureau. As part of the larger responsibilities, HE was elected as the President of the Arab Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (ARABOSAI) and the Chairman of the Executive Committee of the ARABOSAI.
At the State level, HE is a member of the Higher Council of Economic and Investment Affairs. In 2022, His Excellency was appointed as the Chairman of the Board of Qatar’s Financial Centre Regulatory Authority (QFCRA) and in addition, he is also the Chairman of Qatar Financial Markets Authority (QFMA). Besides, he is the Vice Chairman of the State Projects Funding Policies Committee, the Vice Chairman of the Investment Committee in the General Retirement and Social Insurance Authority and the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Social and Sport Contribution Fund (Daam). In March 2023, HE was appointed as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Qatar Investment Authority.
At the regional and international levels, HE is a member of the Board of Directors of the Gulf Monetary Council since 2021, and Alternate Governor for the State of Qatar at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank Group (WBG).
H.E. Ali bin Ahmed Al Kuwari has extensive experience in government and the financial industry, spanning over 30 years.
Prior to being appointed as the Minister of Finance in October 2021, he held the position of Minister of Trade and Industry.
H.E. became QNB Chief Executive Officer in July 2013 and held this position until 2018.
Professional Experience
- Minister of Finance - October 2021 - till present
- Minister of Commerce & Industry - Acting Minister of Finance - May 2021 - October 2021
- Minister of Commerce & Industry - November 2018 - October 2021
- QNB Chief Executive Officer - July 2013 - November 2018
Board Memberships
- Chairman of Qatar National Bank
- Chairman of Qatar Development Bank
- Chairman of Katara Hospitality
- Member of The Supreme Council of Economic Affairs and Investment
- Board member of Qatar Investment Authority
- QatarEnergy Board Member
Educational Background
- Master of Science in Management Information System from the Seattle Pacific University
- Bachelor in Math and Computer Science from Eastern Washington University.
Education
He has a degree in Islamic sharia, specialty Islamic economics, from Imam Muhammad bin Saud Islamic University and a degree in legal studies from the Institute of Public Administration in Riyadh.
Career outside Government
- Co-founder in AlJadaan and partners law firm in cooperation with Clifford Chance. 1995- 2015.
- Specializing in commercial law, finance and financial market transactions. He led a team of lawyers in the provision of legal services and contracts in many transactions and partnerships in the sectors of energy, petrochemicals, metals, water desalination, privatization and partnership between the public and private sectors and financing projects and initial proposals in the stock markets, bonds and sukuk.
- Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Saudi Center for Commercial Arbitration, 2014 - 2015.
- Member of the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority, 2014 - 2015. ∙ Member of the Advisory Committee of the Capital Market Authority, 2013- 2015 ∙ Member of the Lawyers Committee Commercial and Industrial Chamber, 2013 - 2015.
- Member of the Advisory Committee of the Supreme Economic Council, 2009 - 2015.
- Member of the Saudi Arbitrators registered at the Saudi Ministry of Justice until 2015
Career in Government
- He was appointed Chairman of the Capital Markets Authority on 29 January 2015, until he was appointed Minister of Finance on 1 November 2016.
- He was appointed Acting Minister of Economy and Planning March 2020 - May 2021.
Minister of Finance
The Minister of Finance is responsible for developing effective financial policies and managing financial resources to achieve economic growth stability, financial sustainability, increasing spending efficiency Through effective governance and strengthening partnerships with the private sector; as well as supporting the Kingdom’s influence on the regional and international financial community. The Minister is Chairman/Member of the following boards and committees
- Member of the Board of Directors of the Public Investment Fund, from 2016 to date, Chairman of the Investment Committee
- Governor of the Kingdom at the Infrastructure Investment Asian Bank, from 2016 to date.
- Member of the Ministerial Council of the OPEC Fund for International Development, from 2016 to date.
- Member of the Board of Governors of the International Monetary Fund, from 2016 to date
- Member of the Board of Governors of the World Bank, from 2016 to date - Head of the Saudi side in the Saudi-German Joint Committee, from 2016 to date.
- Head of the Saudi side in the Saudi-Italian Joint Committee, from 2016 to date. - Head of the Kingdom’s delegation to the meetings of finance ministers and central bank governors of the G20, from 2016 to date.
- Member of the Board of Governors of the Islamic Development Bank, from 2016 to date.
- Member of the Board of Governors of Arab Financial Institutions, from 2016 to date.
- Member of the Saudi-Syrian Joint Committee, from 2016 to date. - Member of the Council of Arab Ministers of Finance, from 2016 to date
- Chairman of the Board of Directors of the General Authority of Zakat & Tax (GAZT), from 2017 to date.
- Chairman of the Preparatory Committee and Chief Executive Officer of the management of the Saudi Aramco IPO, from 2017 to date.
- Chairman of the Financial Sector Development Program Committee, from 2017 to date.
- Chairman of the Fiscal Balance Program Committee, from 2017 to date. - Chairman of the Financial Stability Committee, from 2017 to date. - Chairman of the board of the General Authority of Customs, from 2018 to date.
- Chairman of the Saudi side of the sub-committee of the Saudi-China High Joint Committee, from 2018 to date.
- Member of the Board of Saudi Aramco from 2018 to date.
- Chairman of the board of the General Authority of Governments Real Estate, from 2018 to date.
Kristalina Georgieva currently serves as Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, a position she was selected for on September 25, 2019 and has served as since October 1, 2019.
Before joining the IMF, Ms. Georgieva was CEO of the World Bank from January 2017 to September 2019, during which time she also served as Interim President of the World Bank Group for three months.
Previously, Ms. Georgieva helped shape the agenda of the European Union while serving as European Commission Vice President for Budget and Human Resources. In this capacity she oversaw the EU’s €161 billion (US $175bn) budget and 33,000 staff, as well as the EU’s response to the Euro Area debt crisis and the 2015 refugee crisis. Before that, she was Commissioner for International Cooperation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response, managing one of the world’s largest humanitarian aid budgets.
Ms. Georgieva began her career in public service at the World Bank as an environmental economist in 1993. After serving for 17 years, and in many senior positions, including Director for Sustainable Development, Director for the Russian Federation, Director for Environment, and Director for Environment and Social Development for the East Asia and Pacific Region, her career culminated in her appointment as Vice President and Corporate Secretary in 2008. In this role, she served as the interlocutor between the World Bank Group’s senior management, its Board of Directors, and its shareholder countries.
Ms. Georgieva serves on many international panels including as co-Chair of the Global Commission on Adaptation, and as co-chair of the United Nations Secretary-General’s High-Level Panel on Humanitarian Financing. She has authored and co-authored over 100 publications on environmental and economic policy, including textbooks on macro- and microeconomics.
Born in Sofia, Bulgaria, in 1953, Ms. Georgieva holds a Ph.D in Economic Science and a M.A. in Political Economy and Sociology from the University of National and World Economy, Sofia, where she was an Associate Professor between 1977 and 1993. During her academic career, she was visiting fellow at the London School of Economics and at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
In 2010, she was named “European of the Year” and “Commissioner of the Year” by European Voice in recognition for her leadership in the EU’s response to humanitarian crises. In October 2020, she received the Atlantic Council’s Distinguished International Leadership Award in acknowledgement of exceptional and distinctive contributions during her career of public service.
Stephen Pagliuca
Senior Advisor, Bain Capital Private Equity
Managing General Partner & Co-Owner, Boston Celtics
Steve Pagliuca is a Senior Advisor to Bain Capital Private Equity.
Since joining the firm in 1989, Mr. Pagliuca has played a leading role in a wide spectrum of prominent technology, media, telecommunications and financial services businesses in which Bain Capital Private Equity has made investments.
Prior to joining Bain Capital, Mr. Pagliuca was at Bain & Company where he advised many Fortune 500 companies on business strategy and growth initiatives.
Mr. Pagliuca is a Managing General Partner and co-owner of the Boston Celtics. He is also active in a number of charitable and civic activities. Mr. Pagliuca is President of the Boston Celtics Shamrock Foundation, Chairman of the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (MSPCC) and is a board member of Bain Capital Children's Charity. Mr. Pagliuca is a member of the Harvard Business School Board of Dean’s Advisors. He is also a member of the Duke University Board of Trustees.
Mr. Pagliuca received a B.A. from Duke University and an M.B.A. from the Harvard Business School.
K. Don Cornwell is Dynasty Equity’s Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer.
Prior to Dynasty Equity, Don was a Founding Partner at PJT Partners, a premier global advisory-focused investment bank. In January 2023, Don became a member of the Board of Directors of PJT Partners. Don joined PJT Partners in 2015 following an 18-year career at Morgan Stanley. At Morgan Stanley, Don was in the Mergers and Acquisitions Group and established a particularly focused area of expertise in media and entertainment, specifically in sports and gaming. Prior to leaving Morgan Stanley he served as Head of Global Sports Investment Banking.
Don has worked on some of the largest and most complex sports and entertainment deals in the industry, including the sale of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, the sale of the Buffalo Bills, the sale of IMG to William Morris Endeavor, the sale of Access/DAZN owned Perform Group to Vista owned STATS Inc., a recapitalization of the Pittsburgh Steelers, and the formation of Major League Baseball Advanced Media. In addition, he has served as a strategic advisor to the National Football League and the National Basketball Association on numerous occasions.
Don has also worked on several transformational transactions in the gaming space including the combination of Flutter Entertainment and The Stars Group, the sale of Caesars Entertainment to Eldorado Resorts, the acquisition of Sky Betting and Gaming by The Stars Group, the formation of a US sports betting joint venture between MGM Resorts and GVC, and the acquisition of Double Down Casino by IGT.
Prior to Morgan Stanley, Don worked at McKinsey & Co. as a management consultant and in corporate development for the National Football League. He sits on the Board of Trustees of the Harlem Children’s Zone, an education and social services organization in Central Harlem; the East Harlem Tutorial Program, an after-school program for children in East Harlem; the Board of Directors of New York Cares, New York City’s largest volunteer organization; and the VFILES Foundation, an organization with the mission to increase business ownership for creators in underrepresented communities.
Don received an MBA from Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business and an AB in Government from Harvard College. Don served on the Management Board of Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business until July 2022.
Chatri Sityodtong is the Founder and CEO of ONE, Asia’s largest global sports media platform with a worldwide broadcast to 179 countries.
According to Nielsen, ONE ranks amongst the world’s top 5 biggest sports media properties (alongside NBA, F1, Champions League, EPL, etc) in terms of viewership and engagement. Through its marquee sports properties (ONE Championship and ONE Esports) and its passionate millennial community, ONE is a celebration of Asia’s greatest cultural phenomena, Martial Arts and Gaming, and the deep-rooted Asian values of integrity, humility, honor, respect, courage, discipline, and compassion. ONE is on a mission to unleash real-life superheroes, tell stories, celebrate values, ignite dreams, inspire nations, and change the world.
Sityodtong is a self-made entrepreneur and lifelong martial artist from Thailand. He is also the latest star of The Apprentice, the award-winning, global reality TV show on Netflix. His rags-to-riches life story has inspired millions around the world on BBC, CNN, Bloomberg, CNBC, and other major media. He was named Asia’s King of Martial Arts by the Financial Times, and Asia’s 2nd Most Powerful Person in Sports by FOX Sports. Business Insider also ranked him as one of Asia’s top 100 business leaders.
Inducted into the Black Belt Hall of Fame, Sityodtong has over 35+ years of martial arts experience. He is a certified senior Muay Thai instructor under the legendary Kru Yodtong Senanan. He also holds a Brown Belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Master Renzo Gracie.
Chatri Sityodtong holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and a BA from Tufts University.
Navin Gupta is Managing Director for South Asia and MENA region for Ripple. Navin joined Ripple following two years as Co-Founder and CEO of on-demand commercial transportation service. Navin has extensive experience in global transaction banking, payments and cash management, and strategy planning following nearly two decades working for HSBC and Citigroup across the U.S., Hong Kong, Japan, Taiwan, and India. Navin served as board member of National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) from 2011 to 2014. In 2008, he was recognized as one of "The 50 Most Promising Young Leaders" in Asia-Pac by The Asian Banker. Navin is a MBA graduate from the Thunderbird School of Global Management in Arizona. Navin is also an Art of Living teacher.
Matthias Rebellius was appointed to the Managing Board of Siemens AG and became the Chief Executive Officer for Siemens Smart Infrastructure on October 1, 2020. Having started his employment at Siemens AG Industrial Automation Group as a Development Engineer and Project Leader in 1990, he continued his career at Siemens AG Automation and Drives Group as Head of Hardware Development for Machine Tool Control business and Head of Marketing and Product Management for Simatic HMI panels. Between 2003 and 2012, Mr. Rebellius served in multiple leadership roles at Siemen Building Technologies, before starting his assignment as President and CEO of Region Americas in Illinois, USA in 2012. He returned to Switzerland in 2015 as CEO of Siemens’ Building Technologies Division and in April 2019 assumed the roles of Chief Operating Officer of Siemens Smart Infrastructure and CEO of Siemens Switzerland.
Dr. Inma Martinez
Digital Pioneer & AI Scientist
Chair of the Expert Group
Global Partnership on AI (GPAI)
Inma Martinez is a technology pioneer and AI scientist advisor to leaders in business and government on the digital economy as a force for progress and societal welfare. Progressing her previous careers in investment banking and telecommunications towards technology entrepreneurship, she is recognised worldwide as one of the leading entrepreneurs who pioneered with teams at Cambridge University and Trinity College Dublin the first real-time AI recommendation system of the mobile Internet. Throughout the 2000s she continued working in technology innovation creating emerging digital technologies like mobile music and video streaming, the connected car and smart living. Her unique experience has allowed her to become one of the most sought-after experts in forecasting digital disruptions and revealing the potentiality of AI and other transformative technologies.
As a government advisor, Inma currently serves as Chair of the Multi-stakeholder Expert Group and Co-Chair of the Steering Committee at the GPAI, the G7/OECD global agency for the development and cooperation on AI. She joined the GPAI as a government nominated expert on innovation and commercialisation of AI and leads the AI in Agriculture project. She has served in the United Kingdom at the Trade & Investment agency and at the Innovation Fund of the Department of Sport, Media and Culture, the All Party Parliamentary Group on AI, and is currently a member Member of the A.I. Council Advisory Board (State Secretariat for AI) at Ministry of Economic Affairs and Digital Transformation, Government of Spain.
Since 2001 Inma has provided expert testimonies and sector strategies on Big Data and AI at the European Commission contributing to numerous strategies and policies shaping the digital future of the single market, at the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) highlighting the implications of the 4IR for developing countries and become a collaborator of UNESCO’s initiative to make AI inclusive of intercultural input and the European Space Agency’s Human and Robotic Exploration and the Ariane Cities programmes.
Inma is a guest lecturer at Imperial College London Business School and directs the Master in AI at the University of Loyola in Spain, where is a member of its Advisory Council. She has been a key figure in the European knowledge-transfer efforts and has mentored technological innovation at the top venture-focused acceleration programmes.
She has authored two books: “The Future of the Automotive Industry” (June 2021) and “The Fifth Industrial Revolution: How Space Commercialisation will derive the Biggest Industrial Expansion of the 21st Century” (November 2019) on digital transformation and the radical business models creating the progress, competitive attributes and stakeholders’ values of the new society. She has also collaborated with numerous white papers on Cloud & Edge Computing and other telecommunications innovations.
FORTUNE and TIME have described her as one of Europe’s top talents in social engagement through technology and FastCompany labelled her a “firestarter” while The Financial Times and The Economist have counted on her participation at their conferences. She was voted the “Best contributor to the formation of strategy” in the section “Driving the Future of Europe’s Digital Economy” at Bloomberg BusinessWeek’s European Leadership Forum: Charting the Economic Future of Europe, a conference for CEOs and government officials.
Dr. Ola Brown is the founding partner of Healthcare Capital Africa also known as ‘Healthcap’; a pan-Africa investment company focused on investments that create a healthier world. There are two arms to our business: our infrastructure investing arm that focuses on healthcare/clean energy & social infrastructure and our venture capital arm that invests in pre Series A startups in fintech and healthtech. Healthcap has invested in nearly 30 startups in fintech and healthtech. On the infrastructure side Healthcap has a pipeline of almost $800m in healthcare, clean energy and clean water projects across the continent. She previously founded a tech enabled urgent care services marketplace called Flying Doctors Nigeria which has provided services in over 100 countries and responds to over 5000 requests yearly.
Along with two other directors, Dr. Ola co-founded and runs leading early stage venture capital firm, Greentree investment company which provides growth capital to some of Africa’s most exciting tech start-up’s. Greentree Investment company has invested in start-up’s in various sectors mainly fintech, but also media, SaaS, Agri-tech, manufacturing, ecommerce, health tech and Edutech making it one of West Africa’s leading venture capital firms. In 2020, we exited our investment in Paystack when it was acquired by Stripe. Since then we have had a second exit in the fintech space.
She has published four books ‘EMQ’s in Paediatrics’, ‘Pre-Hospital Care for Africa’ , ‘Fixing Healthcare in Nigeria; a guide to public healthcare policy and Banking, Finance & Economics in Emerging Markets: an essay collection. She co-authored the ‘Impact investing for healthcare financing report’ alongside Stears business and authored the’ Project financing and healthcare infrastructure’ report. She has also written articles in the British Medical Journal, the Journal of Emergency Medical Services, the Niger Delta Medical Journal, the New York Times and the Huffington Post.
Dr. Ola Brown (Orekunrin) sits on the board of the professional women's network (Lagos Chapter). She leads the Health as a business group at the Nigerian Economics Summit Group (NESG); a think tank. She also facilitates trade between Nigeria, the United States and the UK through her seats on the committee of the British Business Group (Lagos)and as Chairperson of the Nigerian-American Chamber of Commerce, Healthcare Business Forum. She is also on the exco of Women in Finance Nigeria.
Dr. Ola studied medicine and surgery at the Hull York Medical School after which she worked in Acute Medicine in the UK. She also holds a Masters degree in Finance and Economic Policy (Major) from the University of London. She currently teaches economics and finance at the School of politics, policy and governance in Nigeria.
Eng. Omar Al-Ansari
Secretary General
Qatar Research, Development, and Innovation Council (QRDI)
Eng. Omar Al-Ansari is the Secretary General of the Qatar Research, Development, and Innovation (QRDI) Council.
He began his career in the Oil and Gas sector at ExxonMobil and continued in the manufacturing industry to support the development of Qatar’s primary aluminum plant, Qatalum. Eng. Al-Ansari transitioned to working on issues of national strategic importance, such as developing the National Food Security Strategy. He implemented significant elements of this strategy, working in an advisory and think-tank capacity to government leadership, advising on policy, and managing a portfolio of public-private partnership projects.
Eng. Al-Ansari led the development of the Qatar Research and Development Strategy 2030 (QRDI 2030); and engaged with critical stakeholders to help continue the development of a robust, dynamic, holistic RDI ecosystem capable of addressing national imperatives and delivering significant economic and societal impact.
As the Secretary General of the QRDI Council, Eng. Al-Ansari steers the realization of the Council’s vision of transforming Qatar towards an innovative and knowledge-based economy. He oversees the implementation and evolution of several key innovation and scientific research programs.
Eng. Al-Ansari and QRDI Council team also worked on enhancing the scientific research programs of the Council to build more connectivity with end-users to create knowledge and talent in priority sectors.
Courtney Powell is tasked with helping venture capital firm 500 Global scale globally and explore new opportunities across both new and existing markets. She is responsible for driving day-to-day operations across the team to pursue 500’s mission of uplifting people and economies through entrepreneurship.
Her ties to 500 Global go back to 2012, when she founded PublikDemand, a member of Batch 4 in 500’s Seed Accelerator. She went on to become CEO of Agent Pronto, one of the largest real estate agent referral services in North America, which was ultimately acquired by Fidelity National Title Group.
Most recently, Courtney was the Head of Corporate Development at Keller Williams, the largest real estate franchise in the world. During her tenure, she established the company’s first corporate innovation program, and worked with Keller Capital to invest and acquire tech companies in the real estate space.
Courtney was named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 list in 2012, received the Twilio Doer Award in 2013, and became a Google Business Leader in 2015. She attended the University of Texas at Austin and studied French and Corporate Communication.
Hon. Minister Paula Ingabire
Ministry of Information Communication Technology and Innovation
Republic of Rwanda
Paula Ingabire is a Rwandan technology enthusiast, who currently serves as the Minister of ICT and Innovation in the Government of Rwanda. Prior to her appointment as Minister, she served as Head of the ICT Business Development Department at the Rwanda Development Board (RDB) where she led the implementation of National ICT programs notably eGovernment and Cyber Security; as well as the coordinator of the Kigali Innovation City Project, a flagship program of the Government designed to nurture and strengthen a Pan-African Innovation eco-system in Rwanda.
Minister Ingabire coordinated the creation of Smart Africa, an initiative that seeks to leverage broadband infrastructure as a driver for Africa’s socio- economic growth.
A graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s School of Engineering & Sloan School of Management, in the System Design and Management program and holds a BS in Computer Engineering and Information Technology from the University of Rwanda; Paula was named in 2019 by Apolitical among the Top 20 of the World’s 100 most influential people in digital government. She serves on the Global Council of the World Summit Award Board of Directors, World Economic Forum Cyber Security Board, the Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution Global Network Advisory Board and the WEF Board of Trustees. In January 2021, Paula Ingabire has been named founding board member of the EDISON Alliance.
Farah Elbahrawy is an equities reporter and deputy team leader at Bloomberg News in Dubai, covering a wide range of topics and regions, from the Middle East, to Europe and the US.
Ayaan Adam brings 27 years of visionary leadership and a strong track record in emerging markets investment, asset management, private equity, infrastructure, and climate change related financing products, with a particular focus on African and Asian Markets. Prior to her recent appointment, Ms. Adam headed the private sector arm of the Green Climate Fund (GCF), established within the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Based in South Korea, she played a key role in building the mandate of the GCF Private Sector Facility and rapidly scaling its portfolio to US$ 2.1 billion in three years across Africa, Asia Pacific, and Latin America and the Caribbean. She previously was CDC Group’s Managing Director of Africa Funds and had a 17-year career with the International Finance Corporation, serving as a Chief Investment Officer among other roles. US-born and raised in Somalia and Tanzania, Ms. Adam holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Sloan School of Management, and a Bachelor of Arts in Mathematics, Summa cum laude from Clark University.
Hemant has more than twenty-five years’ experience in the private sector and international institutions, having worked for the IFC/ World Bank Group, Shell Wind, GE, one of the largest single-family office’s globally, independent power producers and run his own companies at the operational and C-suite levels. He has experience creating markets while leading revenue streams in the renewable energy and energy transition sectors, with a focus on creating bankable pipelines across Asia and North America. Hemant’s specialisms span energy generation (solar, wind, hydro, biomass), transition (batteries, green hydrogen, off grid solutions), transmission, and distribution sectors, having successfully created portfolios of more than $10B
Currently based in Singapore, Hemant has also spent a significant amount of time in India, China, the US and Vietnam. He is an engineer by training and has an MBA from the Ross School of Business at The University of Michigan.
Zoë Knight is Group Head of the HSBC Centre of Sustainable Finance and Head of Climate Change MENAT.
Zoë joined the Global Research business of HSBC in 2010 to provide institutional investors with climate change analysis and recommendations. Since then she has produced insights on low-carbon opportunities in bond and equity markets, long-term carbon and water risks and managing financial stability in relation to climate change. She has been advising global institutional investors on equity investing and climate change for over 25 years. During her tenure in markets she authored the ‘Keeping it Cool’ Series of briefings on climate policy, economics and investment ideas and achieved a No 1 ranking for Climate Change Research by institutional investors in industry awards from 2014 to 2017.
In 2018, Zoë set up the Centre of Sustainable Finance at HSBC to provide climate insight across the group. The Centre provides thought leadership about transforming the real economy and strengthening the financial system response to climate change. Centre achievements include collaborating with 45 academic and industry partners across 15 countries to produce over 150 pieces of work.
Prior to HSBC, Zoë worked in both a major European and US investment bank. An economist by academic background, her initial career was focused on providing equity ideas to investors focused on European Small and MidCap markets.
Zoë has participated in a variety of advisory boards and councils on climate across the financial services industry, including the UK All Parliamentary Group on Climate Change, UK Finance, the Task Force on Climate Related Financial Disclosures and the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero. In addition, she is a regular contributor to the academic agenda, and is a contributing author to ‘Investment opportunities for a low-carbon world’, 2009. Currently, she is a Commissioner on the Energy Transition Commission, sits on the Advisory Board of the UK Centre for Greening Finance and Investment and the WEF Global Future Council on Net Zero Transition.
In 2020, she was recognised as one of 275 Global female energy influencers by the Women’s Energy Council, and in 2021 she featured in ‘The Female Lead’, a book of 67 women changing the world today. In 2022 she was included in the inaugural list of 50 most influential people in Sustainable Finance by Financial News.
Sally Hamdalla, Head of Financial Institutions & Multilateral Relationships of QNB ALAHLI - Egypt.
Sally has 20 years of collective banking experience.
She spent more than 12 years in the area of Corporate & Investment Banking, specializing in Project & Structured Financing, where she assumed the position of Deputy Head of Project & Structured Finance, actively participating in the structuring of several large-ticket project finance & syndicated deals including mega infrastructure projects.
Since 2016 and until now, she has been building the bank’s strategic relationships with commercial, developmental, and multilateral financial institutions and agencies where she took the lead in structuring several strategic partnerships including spearheading the Bank’s Sustainable Finance business.
Verity Ratcliffe is a Dubai-based reporter covering energy across the Middle East and North Africa for Bloomberg. She's worked as a journalist, mostly covering energy and the Middle East, since 2007 and published stories in MEED, The Telegraph, The Times, Economist, Financial Times, Interfax Energy, BBC News, The National and Infrastructure Journal.
Emma is the Head of Carbon at BloombergNEF. Recent output includes analysis of Article 6 and implications of the EU ‘Fit for 55’ package on the EU Carbon Market. Prior to this Emma led the buildings work at BloombergNEF focused on heating and cooling decarbonization. Before joining BloombergNEF, Emma spent 5 years working for the New Zealand Government in a variety of roles including as an economic advisor to the Associate Minister of Finance and as a senior economist for the Ministry for the Environment. She holds an MSocSc (first class) in Micro Economics from the University of Waikato.
Ms. Elham is a banker holding a Bachelor with honor degree in Business Administration / American University in Cairo and she is a Member in the legal bankers Institute in London. Ms. Elham joined Commercial Bank of Kuwait in the year 2000 as Manager – International Banking and progressively held top-executive positions holding the position of GM – New York Branch, Acting GM – International Banking, GM – International Banking in December 2010. she was promoted as Deputy CEO in April 2012 and was appointed as the CEO of the Bank on 20/11/2014. Before joining Commercial bank of Kuwait, Ms. Elham worked with a number of Kuwaiti financial institutions possessing a long experience and a proven track record in banking financial areas for approximately 30 years.
Duties and Responsibilities
President Director of BCA, responsible for overall coordination as well as the direct supervision of Internal Audit Division and the Anti Fraud Bureau.
Career
Previously served as Deputy President Director of BCA (2005-2011), lastly responsible for the Branch Banking Business, Treasury Division, International Banking Division, and overseas representative offices. He served as Director of BCA (1999-2005) and has held a variety of managerial positions at BCA since 1990. Prior to joining BCA, he served as the Finance Director at a leading Indonesian automotive company, PT Indomobil (1989-1990), and held various managerial positions at one of Indonesia’s largest pharmaceutical companies, PT Kalbe Farma (1980-1989), lastly as the Finance Director. He started his career in 1979 as an accountant at an accounting company (Price Waterhouse).
During his career, he accumulated extensive experience in various areas and assignments, including change management, banking strategy, treasury, accounting& financial management, corporate banking business, international banking business, risk management, and digital banking.
Education, Certification, and Training in 2022
He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting from Universitas Indonesia (1982).
List of professional training, seminars and conferences attended in 2022 is presented on page 378 in this Annual Report.
Affiliations
No financial relationship, stock ownership relationship, and/or family relationship with members of the Board of Commissioners, fellow member of the Board of Directors, and/ or the controlling shareholders of BCA.
Concurrent Positions
No concurrent position as a member of a Board of Commissioners, Board of Directors, or Executive Officer at other banks, companies, and/or institutions.
Michael Miebach is chief executive officer of Mastercard and a member of its board of directors.
He is leading the company into a more digital world where Mastercard powers economies and empowers people by harnessing innovation and the continued application of new technologies. The company is helping to deliver better experiences that are shaping the future of seamless commerce, while bolstering cyber services and data-powered insights.
For much of the past decade, first as chief product officer and then president, Michael was critical to setting the strategy that transformed the company’s offerings from a consumer card-centric business to a platform supporting choice in how businesses, people and governments make payments. This strategy, combined with the company’s customer focus, helped Mastercard evolve and diversify into new areas including real-time payments, open banking, digital identity and other value-added services.
His collaborative approach creates scalable and trusted solutions for the exchange of payments and data and can be seen in his leadership of the acquisitions of Vocalink, Finicity, Ekata, CipherTrace and the corporate services business of Nets – each expanding Mastercard’s range of payment flows.
Michael joined Mastercard in 2010 to lead its Middle East and Africa operations, where he helped shape and advance the company’s financial inclusion efforts - first in Africa and subsequently around the world - with targeted solutions for governments and their citizens that deliver a commercially sustainable social impact. Earlier in his career, Michael held senior roles at Barclays Bank and Citibank.
He serves on the U.S. Treasury Advisory Committee on Racial Equity, focused on advancing racial equity in the economy and addressing acute disparities for communities of color, and is a member of the board of directors for the non-profits Accion and the World Resources Institute.
Michael is a member of The Business Roundtable, The Business Council, the U.S.-India CEO Forum, the International Advisory Panel of the Monetary Authority of Singapore, and The International Business Council of the World Economic Forum. He sits on the board of directors for the Metropolitan Opera and serves as a board member at large for the Ronald McDonald House New York City.
Michael holds a Master of Business Administration from the University of Passau in Germany.
After five years working in several financial positions in New York, San Francisco and London, Sébastien Bazin was appointed CEO of Hottinguer Rivaud Finances, an investment bank, in 1990, and then CEO of L’Immobilière Hôtelière, a hotel developer in France, in 1992. In 1997, he moved to Colony Capital, a private real estate investment firm, to head up its European branch and lead several acquisitions, principally in the hospitality sector (Générale des Eaux, Club Méditerranée, Lucien Barrière, Fairmont & Raffles, Buffalo Grill, Château Lascombes, Stadia Consulting and others).
He joined Accor’s Board of Directors in 2005 and, via Colony Capital, became a Paris Saint-Germain shareholder in 2006 and the club’s Chairman in 2009. In August 2013, he resigned from his duties at Colony Capital and was appointed Chairman and CEO of Accor. Sébastien is Vice-Chairman of the Gustave Roussy Foundation’s Supervisory Board, and has been a member of GE’s Board of Directors since 2016.
Tan Sri Tony Fernandes, male, 58, is a co-founder of AirAsia. He was appointed as a Non-Independent Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of Capital A Berhad (formerly known as AirAsia Group Berhad) on 30 March 2018.
Tan Sri Tony is one of Asia's most recognisable entrepreneurs, best known for co-founding low-cost carrier AirAsia and democratising air travel in the region.
In December 2001, Tan Sri Tony, together with Datuk Kamarudin Meranun, Dato' Pahamin Ab Rajab and Dato' Abdel Aziz @ Abdul Aziz bin Abu Bakar, acquired struggling domestic airline, AirAsia, and with the help of Conor McCarthy, relaunched it as a pioneer of budget travel in Asia, building AirAsia into the world's best low-cost carrier.
He studied in the UK and qualified as an Associate Member of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) in 1991, then as a Fellow Member in 1996. He is also a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW). An accountant by training, he began his career in Virgin Group before returning to Malaysia as Warner Music Group's Vice President for Southeast Asia before venturing into the airline business.
Tan Sri Tony has received numerous honours and awards over the course of his career. These include the Honour of the Commander of the Order of the British Empire, conferred by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in 2011, and the Commander of the Legion d'Honneur, awarded by the French Government for outstanding contributions to the economy of France through the aviation industry. He also received the Panglima Setia Mahkota (PSM) award conferred by Yang Di Pertuan Agong Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin, which carries the title Tan Sri.
He is also a Non-Independent Non-Executive Director of AirAsia X Berhad.
William E. Heinecke is the founder and chairman of Minor International, the parent company of Minor Hotels. His leadership of Minor International has spanned close to six decades, guiding what began as a small startup into one of the world’s largest hospitality and lifestyle groups.
Known as one of Asia’s most inveterate entrepreneurs, Mr. Heinecke's journey to business icon began at age 17, when he launched his first company while still in high school. Using US$1,200 in borrowed funds, he went to register his company in Bangkok, however as he wasn’t yet 18 years old and considered a minor the business was registered under the name ‘Minor.’ In the intervening years, Mr. Heinecke has fused his passion for experiential hospitality with a maverick style and shrewd commercial acumen, growing what became known as Minor Hotels into a diversified global hospitality group with brands including Anantara, Avani, Oaks, Elewana and Tivoli. The group’s hotel portfolio tripled in size with the acquisition of Spain's NH Hotel Group in 2018, the year of Minor's golden anniversary, and Mr. Heinecke continues to be a driving force behind Minor Hotels, which currently boasts more than 530 hotels in 56 countries.
Mr. Heinecke’s name has become synonymous with entrepreneurial success and hospitality leadership in Asia. He was named Entrepreneur of the Year at the Asia Pacific Enterprise Awards in 2022, and HOTELS Magazine's Corporate Hotelier of the World 2017. He also received a HICAP Lifetime Achievement Award in 2016 and was recognized with the Trailblazer Award at the Asian Business Leadership Forum Awards in 2013. He is the author of The Entrepreneur: 25 Golden Rules for the Global Business Manager. Under his leadership, Minor Hotels was an early pioneer in eco-friendly hospitality in Southeast Asia and has since established itself as a leader in sustainable tourism development.
Mr. Heinecke served as CEO of Minor International until 2020, before deciding to focus on his role as chairman of the board and direct more of his attention on the group’s long-term strategy and philanthropic endeavours including the Heinecke Foundation, which supports education for less-fortunate children; the Golden Triangle Asian Elephant Foundation, which seeks to improve the welfare of elephants; and the Mai Khao Marine Turtle Foundation, which helps rejuvenate the turtle population in Thailand’s Sirinat Marine National Park. In his role as chairman of the board of Minor International, Mr Heinecke also oversees one of Asia’s largest restaurant companies, Minor Food, with more than 2,500 outlets globally under brands including The Pizza Company, The Coffee Club and Benihana; and Minor Lifestyle, which operates nearly 400 retail stores.
Born in the US in 1949, Mr. Heinecke moved to Bangkok in 1963 with his family after stints living in Japan, Hong Kong and Malaysia. He became a Thai citizen in 1991. He married his high school sweetheart Kathy in 1968, and together they have two sons, John and David. An avid adventurer, Mr. Heinecke fills his limited free time pursuing life-long passions for aviation and automobiles.
Mallika Kapur is Deputy Global Editor for Bloomberg Live, where she is responsible for the editorial content of its marquee summits including 'Invest', 'Bloomberg Equality' and 'Sooner Than You Think'. Bloomberg Live uses the power of Bloomberg data and the reach and insight of its award-winning newsroom to create newsmaking events and provide valuable insights to decision-makers around the world.
Previously, Mallika was CNN’s Mumbai-based international correspondent responsible for coverage from India’s financial capital. Since she joined CNN in 2001, she has reported extensively on key political, economic, social and environmental stories and anchored shows for the network in London, Mumbai and Hong Kong. Prior to that, she worked for CNBC in New York and Singapore.
She is the co-author of Changemakers: Twenty Women Transforming Bollywood Behind The Scenes.
Mallika graduated from Brown University and has a Masters in Broadcast Journalism from Columbia University. She is a member of the Hong Kong support board of the Asian University for Women.
Charles F. Stewart joined Sotheby’s as Chief Executive Officer in October 2019, following the acquisition by Mr. Patrick Drahi. Under Mr. Stewart’s leadership, the company is focused on delivering its mission to expand access and ownership of works of art and luxury objects by operating the world’s most trusted marketplace. Mr. Stewart's operational principles are to balance Sotheby's extraordinary 277-year heritage with embracing innovation and technology to power its future.
Prior to Sotheby’s, Mr. Stewart served as Co-President and Chief Financial Officer of Altice USA, which he helped establish as one of the leading technology, telecommunications and entertainment providers in the U.S. In 2017, he helped lead the Company's successful $2.1 billion initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange, the largest telecom IPO in 15 years. Mr. Stewart also spearheaded the expansion of Altice USA's Advertising and News businesses which included the development of its national advertising platform, the acquisition of Cheddar, expansion of i24 News, and continued investment in hyperlocal news network News 12 Networks.
Mr. Stewart joined Altice USA after two decades of banking and finance experience spanning the U.S., Latin America and Europe. During his seven years based in London, he served as CEO of Itaú BBA International plc, the international arm of Itaú Unibanco, the largest bank in Latin America. In that role, he oversaw Itaú Unibanco's wholesale and private banking activities across Europe, the Middle East, Asia and the U.S. Prior to that, he spent 19 years in investment banking at Morgan Stanley in various client and leadership roles, including as Deputy Head of Investment Banking for EMEA, Head of Latin America Investment Banking, and member of the global investment banking management committee.
Mr. Stewart is a graduate of Yale University and lives in New York City with his wife and three children. He serves on the boards of the Coalition for College and the Partnership for New York City and is a trustee of Prep for Prep.
Mr. Stewart's Instagram handle is: @charlesfstewart.
Joana Vicente is the CEO of Sundance Institute. She began leading the nonprofit arts organization in 2021, which is dedicated to discovering and developing independent artists and audiences and supports and inspires independent film and media artists from the United States and worldwide. She is a producer and a passionate supporter of independent storytellers who has extensive experience running nonprofits that support artists.
Prior to joining Sundance Institute, she spent three years as Executive Director and Co-Head of the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) and the TIFF organization. Before that, she spent nearly a decade as the Executive Director of the not-for-profit Independent Filmmaker Project (now the Gotham Film & Media Institute).
Vicente has produced/executive produced over 40 feature films by acclaimed directors such as Jim Jarmusch, Nadine Labaki, Brian De Palma, Amir Naderi, Hal Hartley, Nicole Holofcener, Katherine Dieckmann, Alex Gibney and Todd Solondz.
She is recognized as a leading figure of the digital film revolution, having co-founded pioneering digital production companies Blow Up Pictures and HDNetFilms, which she launched with partners Jason Kliot, Mark Cuban, and Todd Wagner. These companies ushered in a new era of digital filmmaking that transformed the landscape of American independent film production and distribution.
Vicente was named one of Variety’s Women That Have Made an Impact in Global Entertainment and Gotham 60: Most Influential New Yorkers in Entertainment and Media and has been listed multiple times in Variety’s Women’s Impact Report. She is a recipient of the Made in New York Award©, which recognizes those who have made significant contributions to the growth of NYC’s media and entertainment industries. Vicente has taught The Business of Film at NYU Stern Business School. Before turning her attention to film, Vicente served as a press attaché at the European Parliament for former Prime Minister and Portuguese delegate Maria de Lourdes Pintassilgo and was a radio news producer/host for the United Nations.
Stephen A. Schwarzman is Chairman, CEO and Co-Founder of Blackstone, one of the world’s leading investment firms with $991 billion Assets Under Management (as of March 31, 2023). Mr. Schwarzman has been involved in all phases of Blackstone’s development since its founding in 1985. The firm has established leading investing businesses across asset classes, including private equity, where it is a global leader in traditional buyout, growth equity, special situations and secondary investing; real estate, where it is currently the largest owner of commercial property in the world; hedge fund solutions, where it is the world’s largest discretionary hedge fund investor; and credit, where it is a global leader and major provider of credit for small, middle-market and other companies. Blackstone also has major businesses dedicated to infrastructure and life sciences investing, as well as delivering the firm’s investment management expertise and products to insurance companies.
Mr. Schwarzman is an active philanthropist with a history of supporting education, as well as culture and the arts, among other things. In 2020, he signed The Giving Pledge, committing to give the majority of his wealth to philanthropic causes. In both business and philanthropy, Mr. Schwarzman has dedicated himself to tackling big problems with transformative solutions. In June 2019, he donated £150 million to the University of Oxford to help redefine the study of the humanities for the 21st century. His gift – the largest single donation to Oxford since the renaissance – will create a new Centre for the Humanities which unites all humanities faculties under one roof for the first time in Oxford’s history, and will offer new performing arts and exhibition venues as well as a new Institute for Ethics in AI. In October 2018, he announced a foundational $350 million gift to establish the MIT Schwarzman College of Computing, an interdisciplinary hub which will reorient MIT to address the opportunities and challenges presented by the rise of artificial intelligence, including critical ethical and policy considerations to ensure that the technologies are employed for the common good. In 2015, Mr. Schwarzman donated $150 million to Yale University to establish the Schwarzman Center, a first-of-its-kind campus center in Yale’s historic “Commons” building, and also gave a founding gift of $40 million to the Inner-City Scholarship Fund, which provides tuition assistance to underprivileged children attending Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of New York. In 2013, he founded an international scholarship program, “Schwarzman Scholars,” at Tsinghua University in Beijing to educate future leaders about China. At over $575 million, the program is modeled on the Rhodes Scholarship and is the single largest philanthropic effort in China’s history coming largely from international donors. Mr. Schwarzman is Co-Chair of the Board of Trustees of Schwarzman Scholars. In 2007, Mr. Schwarzman donated $100 million to the New York Public Library on whose board he serves.
In 2019, Schwarzman published his first book What It Takes: Lessons in the Pursuit of Excellence, a New York Times Best Seller which draws from his experiences in business, philanthropy and public service.
Mr. Schwarzman is a member of The Council on Foreign Relations, The Business Council, The Business Roundtable, and The International Business Council of the World Economic Forum. He is a former co-chair of the Partnership for New York City and serves on the boards of The Asia Society and New York-Presbyterian Hospital, as well as on The Advisory Board of the School of Economics and Management at Tsinghua University, Beijing. He is a Trustee of The Frick Collection in New York City and Chairman Emeritus of the Board of Directors of The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. In 2007, Mr. Schwarzman was included in TIME’s “100 Most Influential People.” In 2016, he topped Forbes Magazine’s list of the most influential people in finance and in 2018 was ranked in the Top 50 on Forbes’ list of the “World’s Most Powerful People.” The Republic of France has awarded Mr. Schwarzman both the Légion d’Honneur and the Ordre des Arts et des Letters at the Commandeur level. Mr. Schwarzman is one of the only Americans to receive both awards recognizing significant contributions to France. He was also awarded the Order of the Aztec Eagle, Mexico’s highest honor for foreigners, for his work on behalf of the U.S. in support of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement in 2018.
Mr. Schwarzman holds a B.A. from Yale University and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School. He has served as an adjunct professor at the Yale School of Management and on the Harvard Business School Board of Dean’s Advisors.
H.E. Mario Abdo Benítez was born in Asunción on November 10, 1971. He is 50 years old and is married to businesswoman Silvana López Moreira Bo. He has three children: Mario, Santiago and Mauricio. He began his academic training at the Colegio San Andrés de la Capital, then attended the GED Test USA, where he completed his primary and secondary studies. He obtained a Bachelor's degree in Marketing from Teikyo Post University, Connecticut, USA (1995).
He received training in the Armed Forces of the Nation, where he graduated as Sub-Lieutenant of Reserve Aviation and Military Paratrooper of the Aeronautics Command.
In the private sector
He has executed a series of activities such as those related to the construction sector. He served as Chairman of the Board of Aldia S.A, a Paraguayan company with more than 20 years of experience in the local market, in addition to holding other important functions in the same business group.
In the public service
He began his political career in 2004 as a member of the "National Republican Reconstruction" movement, at only 33 years of age. He later joined the "Peace and Progress" movement in 2006.
He was Second Vice President of the Governing Board of the National Republican Association, Colorado Party on two occasions.
He held a legislative seat in the Honorable Chamber of Senators for the first time in 2013.
Already in the Upper House, he led the Colorado Party dissidence that led him to occupy the Presidency of the Honorable Chamber of Senators, during the period 2015-2016. His vocation for service and his commitment to dialogue were the key to occupying such legislative position, since he managed to capture votes from Colorado and opponent’s members.
Political leadership
From his movement called "Colorado Añeteté", in 2017 he won the internal party, against the then ruling party Colorado. This victory placed him as the candidate for the Presidency of the Republic for the ANR, Colorado Party.
In the national elections (April 2018), with more than 46% of the votes he defeated his opponent, the Authentic Radical Liberal Party, and thus became the President of the Republic of Paraguay for the constitutional period 2018-2023.
Mario Abdo Benítez is the 9th President of the democratic era and the 50th president in national history, since the government of Carlos Antonio López, considered the first constitutional president of Paraguay.
Pierpaolo is founder and CEO at Ualá. He is also Executive Director at Greenmantle, a macroeconomic and geopolitical consulting firm and senior associate at the Applied History Center of Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government; and founder of 17Sigma, a venture capital to support disruptive and innovative Latin American entrepreneurs in their early stages. In addition, he was Chief Strategist of the Brevan Howard Argentina Fund.
Originally from Buenos Aires, Argentina, Pierpaolo studied at Harvard University, where he graduated magna cum laude and his senior honors thesis was awarded the Thomas T. Hoopes ’19 prize. He was elected Lt. Charles Henry Fiske III Harvard-Cambridge scholar at Trinity College, Cambridge, where he was awarded an MPhil in Economic and Social History and a Gates Cambridge Scholarship. His first book, Hitler’s Shadow Empire: The Nazis and the Spanish Civil War, was published by Harvard University Press in the USA and UK, Penguin Random House in Spain and Latin America, Mondadori in Italy, and Citic in China.
Before Greenmantle, Pierpaolo worked for Goldman Sachs, Soros Fund Management, and Bridgewater Associates.
Marcelo Claure is a global entrepreneur and the Founder & CEO of Claure Group, a multi-billion-dollar global investment firm spanning multiple high growth sectors including tech, telecom, media, real estate, sports and others.
Claure immigrated from Bolivia to the United States and started his first business Brightstar in 1997 by selling mobile phones from the back of his car and growing it to become the world’s largest global wireless distribution and services company and the largest Hispanic business in US history with revenues exceeding US$10 billion.
In 2014, Claure sold Brightstar to SoftBank and immediately became the CEO of Sprint, one of the world’s largest global telecommunications companies, where he led its turnaround and delivered the best financial results in the company’s 120-year history, going from an accumulated loss of US$46.5 billion in the preceding seven years to generating a net income of US$7.4 billion in 2017.
Claure also led the US$195 billion merger between Sprint and T-Mobile that closed in 2020, creating the New T-Mobile which is now the most valuable telecommunications company in the world with a market cap of nearly US$200 billion. Shortly after the merger, Claure executed the largest non-government secondary offering in corporate financial history, a transaction that delivered over US$23B to SoftBank. Claure remains an active board member in the New T-Mobile and is the company’s largest individual shareholder.
Following the merger, Claure was promoted to CEO of SoftBank Group International where he had direct oversight for SoftBank's operating companies like ARM, a global leading chip manufacturer; Fortress, a leading global asset manager; SB Energy, a global leader in renewable energy; Boston Dynamics, the world's most dynamic humanoid robot; WeWork, one of the world’s leading flexible workplace providers, and over 40 other companies in SoftBank’s portfolio. Additionally, Claure was part of the team that helped launch SoftBank’s US$100B Vision Fund.
Going back to his roots as an entrepreneur, Claure launched the US$8 billion SoftBank Latin America fund in 2019, the largest VC fund in the region and up until today, the most important investment vehicle in Latin America venture capital history.
With a passion for futbol, Claure owns Club Bolívar, Bolivia’s largest professional soccer team. In partnership with City Football Group, he is also a co-owner of Girona FC in Spain.
Throughout his career, Claure has been recognized with many entrepreneurship awards and is a member of Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year Hall of Fame. He was also recognized by the Carnegie Corporation as a Great Immigrants Recipient, an award given to extraordinary immigrants who have made notable contributions to the progress of American society.
Claure received a B.S. in Economics and Finance and an honorary Doctorate of Commercial Science from Bentley University. He also received an honorary Doctorate of Laws from Babson College. He is also an Executive Fellow at Harvard Business School and is a member of the 2016 Class of Henry Crown Fellows at the Aspen Institute.
Claure is married with six children.
Jack is a technology, finance and independent film entrepreneur. His current primary role is as Managing Director at Peter Thiel’s family office, Thiel Capital, in Los Angeles. As a “PayPal Mafia” member, Jack co-founded, along with Peter, Clarium Capital Management, a macro hedge fund after selling PayPal to EBay in October 2002. At PayPal, Jack joined as an original employee and later served as a Corporate Officer/Senior Vice President, overseeing the company’s international and corporate operations. As an active technology investor and advisor, Jack is involved with companies such as SpaceX, Bird, Affirm, Blend, FreedomPay, Q Bio, Group Nine, et al. His films include Freeheld, Bernie and Act of Valor as well documentaries like Fastball and many others. Jack received a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Hamilton College and currently serves on its Board of Trustees and as a member of the Investment Committee for the college’s endowment. Jack’s other philanthropic activities include the Navy SEALs Foundation, co-founder and member of the Board of Directors for the Wyoming Global Technology Partnership, cohost/founder of the Arizona Technology Innovation Summit with Governor Doug Ducey.
Currently Hande Çilingir is Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer at Insider, responsible for running efficient operations, building a strong company culture for a team of 1000+ Insiders from 51 different nationalities, managing overseas growth, supporting sales and marketing teams, and sharing and developing Insider’s technology.
Following studies at the London School of Economics, completed a Master's Degree at Shanghai Normal University. During her time in China, worked as an investment consultant in global companies like PepsiCo and Vestel. After gaining international experience working and living in the Middle East, UK, China, Asia Pacific, and Russia, equipped with the skills and know-how to create a global product company.
Being a 1X entrepreneur, founded Insider, a Sequoia-backed, AI-led B2B martech platform in 2012 with five fellow co-founders upon their lucrative exit from a highly prestigious language school. Since then, Insider flourished into one of the most progressive martech companies across 26 countries spanning EMEA, APAC, LATAM & the USA, and was named a Leader in Gartner, Forrester, and G2 this year. Insider empowers marketers behind the growth of top brands; Samsung, IKEA, GAP, MAC, and Virgin with industry-first technologies.
Being a highly influential tech enthusiast and a thought leader, invited to speak at leading technology events to discuss the latest trends and advancements in the customer experience delivery space. Granted the Most Successful Woman Entrepreneur of the Year by Microsoft and was awarded by Junior Chambers International (JCI). Selected as an Endeavor Entrepreneur in ISP-2014. Ranked as one of the top three women CEOs outside of the US by Crunchbase and received many prestigious awards including Top 25 CEOs for Europe, Top Women CEOs in SaaS by TSR, and The Lindas by Endeavor (granted to the top 3 CEOs worldwide).
Welcomed President Barack Obama for a fireside chat at RESHAPE’21 (reshapesummit.com), Insider’s annual leadership summit with dedicated stages for Sustainability, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, Customer Experiences, and Leadership.
Raj Ganguly is Co-Founder and Co-CEO at B Capital Group. He is based in B Capital’s Los Angeles office and focuses his time on partnering with bold entrepreneurs transforming large industries. In addition, Ganguly is a Senior Advisor to BCG, a leading global consulting firm.
Previously, Ganguly spent six years at Bain Capital, conducting operational due diligence and driving growth in portfolio companies across the United States and Asia. Mr. Ganguly was also at the management consulting firm McKinsey & Company, the British beverage company Diageo, and was part of the early team of one of the first internet payments startups, Miradiant (which was later sold to Bank One Corporation/J.P. Morgan Chase).
Ganguly earned an MBA from Harvard Business School, and summa cum laude honors as a BSE and BAS from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School and School of Engineering and Applied Science, where he graduated from the Management & Technology Program as a Benjamin Franklin Scholar and Joseph Wharton Scholar.
A serial entrepreneur whose AI powered platform, Builder.ai, grew 300% last year; and has raised over $195M since 2018 to help make building software as easy as ordering pizza.
Sachin started his career at the age of 14 building PCs, and by 17, he’d built one of the world’s first automatic currency arbitrage trading systems for Deutsche Bank. He started a cloud computing company, Nivio, when he was 21 and still at university (Imperial College), taking it to just under $100m in valuation before exiting (and he still holds a trademark for the word cloud in India!).
Sachin was the World Economic Forum Tech Pioneer in 2009, Entrepreneur.com’s Serial Entrepreneur of the Year and a finalist in the EY Entrepreneur of the Year. He also founded the ‘Geek’s Dinner’, a diverse community of personalities from tech to film, who come together once a year to discuss the most pressing issues challenging humanity. And along with his co-founder and best friend Saurabh are aiming to bring necessary education to 100 million children within the next 50 years.
H.E. Abdulaziz bin Nasser bin Mubarak Al-Khalifa
President, Civil Service & Government Development Bureau
State of Qatar
His Excellency Mr. Abdulaziz bin Nasser bin Mubarak Al Khalifa was appointed President of the Civil Service and Government Development Bureau in October 2021. He also chairs the Board of Directors of Qatar Finance and Business Academy (QFBA) and is a member of the Board of Trustees of Qatar University.
Prior to assuming his current position, Mr . Al Khalifa worked as CEO of Qatar Development Bank for 8 years.
Before that, he was CEO of Qatar Small and Medium Enterprises Development Company and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Bedaya Center for Entrepreneurship and Career Development, Qatar Business Incubation Center, and Qatar FinTech Hub. He has more than 20 years of experience in various sectors, including energy, financial services and private sector development with a focus on SMEs small and medium enterprises. During his career , he spearheaded many programs that had a direct impact on development of the private sector in the State of Qatar.
Mr. Al Khalifa holds a master's degree in business administration from Qatar University and a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from the University of California.
Ola Doudin is the co-founder & CEO of BitOasis, the first and largest digital asset platform in the Middle East. She has an engineering background and has worked in tech consulting in a Big4 firm in London and engineering research prior to her move back to the region where she got involved in tech entrepreneurship and later started BitOasis in 2015. Most recently, Forbes Middle East featured Ola among the ‘Top 10 Women Behind Middle Eastern Tech Brands 2021’. She has also been selected as a ‘Young Global Leader 2022’ – An initiative by the World Economic Forum.
A veteran technology entrepreneur/investor based in Hong Kong, Yat Siu is the co-founder and executive chairman of Animoca Brands, a global leader in blockchain and gaming with the mission to deliver digital property rights to the world's gamers and Internet users, thereby creating a new asset class, play-and-earn economies, and a more equitable digital framework contributing to the building of the open metaverse.
Yat began his career at Atari Germany in 1990. In 1995 he moved to Hong Kong to establish Hong Kong Cybercity/Freenation, the first free web page and email provider in Asia. In 1998 he set up Outblaze, an award-winning pioneer of multilingual white label web services. In 2009, he sold Outblaze’s messaging unit to IBM and pivoted Outblaze to become an incubator of projects and companies to develop digital entertainment services and products. One of those incubated companies is Animoca Brands, which was created in 2014.
In 2017 he set up the Dalton Learning Lab, an afterschool digital lab for skills not emphasized by most education systems, including divergent thinking and design thinking. He is the founder of ThinkBlaze, the research arm of Outblaze investigating socially meaningful issues in technology.
Since 2018, Yat has been an early advocate for the use of blockchain and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) in the gaming industry, which will allow gamers to enjoy true ownership of their own game assets, data, and, consequently, equity. With a clear vision of the potential of decentralized apps and assets, Yat quickly steered Animoca Brands to a leadership position in blockchain, gaming, NFTs, and the open metaverse. Recently valued at US$5.8 billion, Animoca Brands operates a series of NFT-centric subsidiaries and products, and has invested in over 380 blockchain-related companies to build one of the largest blockchain portfolios in the world.
Yat has earned numerous accolades including Global Leader of Tomorrow at the World Economic Forum, Young Entrepreneur of the Year at the DHL/SCMP Awards, and recognition as one of the Cointelegraph top 100 notable people in blockchain.
A classically trained musician, Yat is a member of the advisory board of BAFTA (British Academy of Film and Television Arts) and a director of the Asian Youth Orchestra.
Divya Gokulnath is a visionary education entrepreneur, co-founder of BYJU'S, and a strong advocate of equitable and accessible learning. Under her leadership, BYJU'S has transformed the way students learn, impacting over 150 million learners worldwide, and becoming the world's largest edtech company.
While she began her journey as a teacher, Divya's dedication to creating personalized learning experiences has made her a true powerhouse in the world of edtech. Her dedication to inclusion and making education accessible to all has earned her several awards and recognition, including being frequently named one of the most powerful and impactful entrepreneurs in India.
Divya has been instrumental in launching BYJU'S Education For All, a social initiative that has empowered 5.5 million children from underprivileged backgrounds and remote corners of India with digital education. She is also a strong advocate for diversity in the workplace and creating an empowering ecosystem for women in the industry. Under her leadership, BYJU'S has fostered a culture of bias-free hiring and continuous learning.
Having played a pivotal role in establishing and expanding BYJU'S brand in the Indian market, Divya now actively leads the charge in scaling BYJU'S international business across multiple countries. She is an ardent supporter of India’s fast-growing startup ecosystem and continues to be a mentor for budding young entrepreneurs.
Featured on Fortune 40 under 40 entrepreneurs 2022 list, ranked No 2 in the World’s most powerful women in start-up 2022 by Fortune Global, winner of Fortune Most Powerful Women (2022, 2021, 2020), Express AWE Awards - Woman Entrepreneur of the Year, Education (2022), MAKERS Women Entrepreneur of the Year (2021), ASU GSV Power of Women (2021) award, Business Today's Most Powerful Women (2019, 2020, 2021) award, LinkedIn Top Voices in Education (2019,2020) (India and Global) and Forbes Asia’s 25 Most Powerful Women (2020), Divya is a strong advocate of cherishing cherishing childlike curiosity. A supporter of sustainable growth, she believes that building strong values and setting examples for the community at large is of paramount importance for any business.
Byju Raveendran is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of the world’s leading edtech company and India’s most valuable startup, BYJU’S, which he co-founded with Divya Gokulnath in 2011. A teacher turned entrepreneur, his vision is to bring high-quality, accessible, and personalized education to millions of students around the world. As a first-generation entrepreneur who has risen from the grassroots, Byju is also one of India’s biggest philanthropists in the field of education.
Byju was born to teacher parents in Azhikode, a village in Kerala, off the western coast of India. He studied in a Malayalam-medium government school where his mother taught physics and his father taught mathematics. A prodigiously precocious child, he developed different learning methods on his own to understand academic concepts better and faster. He would often miss his school classes for sports but make up for that by self-learning science and mathematics. This served him well later while designing personalized and adaptive learning programs for his eponymous learning app.
Byju had been working as a globetrotting engineer with a multinational shipping company in Singapore when he started teaching his friends some math concepts while on a holiday back home in India. His tryst with teaching started when he helped a few of his friends write some of the toughest competitive exams in the country including the Common Admission Test (CAT). The classrooms grew exponentially based on the outstanding word-of-mouth publicity around his unique teaching style, he started an education company - BYJU’S Classes - to increase his reach and impact. The largest classroom session Byju ever conducted was for 25,000 students simultaneously at an indoor stadium in Delhi in 2011. It was in the same year that he started shifting from an offline format to video to quickly scale up across India.
In 2011, the company was incorporated as Think and Learn Pvt Ltd., focussed on students in the K-12 space. The name of the company, which would later become parent to the BYJU’S brand name, reflects his conviction that learning should always be fun and never rote-based. The companylaunched BYJU’S - the learning app - in 2015 as internet trends like mobility, video and cloud converged in the background. With “movie-like videos” and “game-like interactions”, the app uses media and technology as enablers of continuous and personalized learning. The company has 150 million students on its various apps, platforms and programs till date
To grow BYJU’S across the world, Byju Raveendran has so far raised nearly $6 billion in capital from more than 70 global investors including Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg’s Chan-Zuckerberg Initiative, Naspers Ltd., Tiger Global Management, and Sequoia Capital India. Byju has a significant stake in BYJU'S. He invested $400 million in BYJU’S in March 2022 in his personal capacity to further increase his stake in the company and put “more skin in the game”. BYJU’S is currently valued at $22 billion.
Byju Raveendran has spearheaded some of the biggest acquisitions in India’s education and technology spaces. BYJU’S parent Think and Learn acquired India’s largest test prep company Aakash Educational Services in April 2021, Singapore-based upskilling firm Great Learning in July 2021 and Austrian Math-learning app GeoGebra in December 2021. He led the entry of BYJU’S in North America through several strategic acquisitions, including that of Osmo, Epic, and Tynker. Under his leadership, BYJU’S has also expanded its product portfolio to include one-on-one learning for school children across the world, including US, UK, Brazil, Indonesia, Mexico and Australia.
Byju& Divya launched a not-for-profit social initiative in 2020 under the umbrella of BYJU’S Education for All (EFA). BYJU’S EFA solves for the shortages of device, internet access and quality educational content in India’s underserved communities. The initial goal was to reach 5 million students by 2025
but that target was reached three years in advance. The strong uptake has now pushed up the target to 10 million students by 2025. In November 2022, BYJU’S unveiled Lionel Messi as the global brand ambassador for BYJU’S Education for All.
Byju Raveendran has received multiple awards for disrupting education around the world through the use of technology. He is the recipient of the Forbes India Entrepreneur of the Year 2021, Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year 2018 (startup) and 2020 (overall), the IMPACT Person of the Year 2019, Fortune 40 under 40 and Manorama Newsmaker of the Year 2020.
Byju is married to Divya Gokulnath, and they are parents to two sons, Nish and Nivin. He always acknowledges his parents role in supporting him is his journey as a teacher and an entrepreneur. He considers his father as his role model for giving him complete freedom to pursue his twin passions of sports and mathematics.
Byju is an avid sportsperson. He plays cricket, tennis, table tennis and football at an expert level. He has learnt most of his life and business skills through sports. It was his passion for both business and sports that saw his company, BYJU’S, sponsor the men’s and women’s national cricket teams of India. In March, 2022 BYJU’S was declared the official sponsor of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.
Robert Jenkins, Ed.D, Director, Education and Adolescent Development, UNICEF Headquarters, joined UNICEF in 1995. He brings over 20 years of experience in international development and humanitarian programming in Africa, Asia and the Middle East.
Prior to his current appointment, Mr. Jenkins served as en. the UNICEF Representative, Jordan, from 2014-2019, and Deputy Director, Division of Policy and Strategy in UNICEF Headquarters from 2009-2014.
From 1995-2009, Robert Jenkins served with UNICEF in programme and management positions in Uganda (1995-1997), Bangladesh (1997-2000), Myanmar (2000-2003), India (2003-2006) and Mozambique (2006-2009).
Mr. Jenkins earned a Doctor of Education Degree from the University of Bath and a Master’s Degree from the London School of Economics in the United Kingdom.
Mr. Jenkins is married and has a daughter and a son. He is a Canadian citizen.
Tomaso Rodriguez is an accomplished technology executive and entrepreneur, startup enthusiast, and venture capitalist currently holding the role of CEO at talabat.
With extensive experience across the world, Tomaso is responsible for ramping up talabat’s presence in the Middle East and further building strategic partnerships. He joined talabat from Singapore-based Grab, Southeast Asia’s market leading super-app and the region's most valuable startup. He headed the GrabFood division, and grew the food delivery business from one city to 200 in just 18 months.
Prior to that, he headed up UberEATS Regional Operations – APAC, based in Singapore, having earlier worked as the global car hailing app General Manager in Italy and Greece. Tomaso started his career as an investor at 360 capital partners, a European fund with $500 million under its management. He had also founded a startup, AgencyManagement in Italy, which was sold to a top international consumer goods company.
Amal Enan is a Partner at 500 Global, a multi-stage venture capital firm, where she leads the firm’s early-stage investments in Egypt and manages startup programs in the country. Amal also advises the American University in Cairo as Chief Investment Officer of the Endowment.
Previously, she was Executive Director of the Egyptian-American Enterprise Fund, joining as the first employee, and helping to grow AUM to over UD$300M. Amal was part of a team of economists at the Macro-Fiscal Policy Unit in the Ministry of Finance where she formulated reform policies and negotiated with international organizations on matters that touch the lives of millions of Egyptians.
Amal was an Associate Investment Officer in the Infrastructure Department at the International Finance Corporation, where she worked on debt and equity projects in MENA. She started her career at EFG-Hermes as a junior economist, becoming a CFA Charter holder. She was also Senior Advisor on COP27 to the World Resources Institute.
Amal received an MBA from Harvard Business School, a Masters in Environment and Development from the London School of Economics, and a Bachelor’s in Economics from Cairo University. She is a MELI fellow at the Aspen Institute and Young Global Leader at the World Economic Forum.
Salman Shaikh is the Founder and CEO of The Shaikh Group (TSG). Before establishing TSG, he was the Director of the Brookings Institution’s Doha Center, where his research focused on conflict resolution, domestic policy, and geopolitics of the Middle East, Shaikh has extensive experience working the United Nations in a number of offices, including as Special Assistant, Middle East and Asia in the Office of the Undersecretary-General for Political Affairs, Political Advisor to the Secretary-General’s Personal Representative for Lebanon during the 2006 war, Special Assistant to the Special Coordinator to the Middle East Peace Process, and Programme Officer for the Special Representative for Children in Armed Conflict. Shaikh also served as Director for policy and research in the private office of Her Highness Sheikha Moza bin Nasser al-Missned, the Consort of the former Emir of the State of Qatar.
Mehran Haghirian is the Director of Regional Initiatives at the Bourse & Bazaar Foundation, a think tank focused on economic diplomacy, economic development, and economic justice in the Middle East and Central Asia. In this role, Mehran draws on his extensive background researching regional political and security frameworks. He is a PhD candidate at Qatar University, where he focuses on the geopolitics of the Persian Gulf region, and holds a master’s degree in international affairs from American University's School of International Service in Washington DC. Prior to joining B&BF, Mehran worked at the Ibn Khaldon Center for Humanities and Social Sciences as a researcher and assistant director and at the Atlantic Council's Future of Iran Initiative as a project assistant.
Dr Hatim Al Shanfari is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Economics and Finance at Sultan Qaboos University. Hatim’s previous experience included a member of the Board of Governors of the Central Bank of Oman, Board member of Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry, vice chairman of Omani Economic Association, chairman of Gulf Investment Services Company (SAOG), chairman of Gulf Baader Capital Markets Company (SAOC), and chairman of Bank Muscat Money Market Fund.
Shaikha Najla Al Qasemi is a former Ambassador and currently the Director of the Global Affairs Department at Bhu’th Dubai Public Policy Research Center. Prior to joining B’huth, she was appointed as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Sweden in 2008, and non-residents in the Republic of Finland and the Kingdom of Denmark. She was later appointed as Ambassador to the Republic of Portugal in 2014. On returning to the UAE, she worked at Zayed University before joining B’huth.
Dr. Hasan Alhasan is a Research Fellow for Middle East Policy at the IISS. His current research interests include Asian–Middle Eastern relations with a focus on South Asia and the Gulf, the foreign policies and economic statecraft of the Arab Gulf monarchies, and regional security in the Gulf. Hasan’s doctoral thesis at King’s College London examined Indian foreign policy towards the Gulf region.
Hamad Mubarak Al-Hajri is a technology entrepreneur, investor, and engineer. He is the founder and CEO of Snoonu, a technology, logistics, and e-commerce company that aims to revolutionize the Middle East market with the fastest services and the most diverse marketplace, facilitating online shopping, lifestyle, food, grocery delivery, and third-party logistics services for startups and SMEs in Qatar.
He is also a co-founder of 12 start-ups with over 20 years of experience in international business innovation, AI, and application development. He is a visionary product developer, mastering all aspects of business formation, operation, finance, and management. Expert in technology & innovation, strategic planning, fundraising & key partnerships, and risk & conflicts management. In 2016 he was accorded the Advanced Project Management certification by Stanford University. From late 2016 to 2017, he joined HEC Paris for an executive MBA, specializing in Business Administration and Management. In March 2019, he was awarded the Executive Leaders Program certificate by Harvard Business School.
Omar Almajdouie is the founding partner of Raed Ventures, an early-stage venture capital firm that partners with exceptional founders building transformative companies in the MENA region. Raed’s AUM exceeds SAR 500m and backed by top investors in the region including PIF’s Jada, SVC, Mubadala, Almajdouie Holding and many more. As an investor and entrepreneur, Omar founded Raed Ventures in 2016 as part of Almajdouie Holding diversification strategy, which has funded more than 40 innovative startups to-date.
He is the former CEO of Almajdouie Manufacturing Co. and he’s currently the Vice Chairman of the Saudi Venture Capital and Private Equity Association, as well as a chairman and board member of several leading tech startups and companies. Omar has more than 20 years of enriched experience in various managerial and executive positions.
List of some current roles:
- Founding Partner, Raed Ventures
- Board Member, Almajdouie Holding
- Board Member, Almajdouie Logistics
- Vice Chairman, Saudi Venture Capital Association
- Board Member, Middle East Venture Capital Association
- Board Member, Endeavor Saudi Arabia
- Supervisory Committee Member of the National Technology Development Program
- Board Member, Majd Investment
- Board Member, Mrsool
- Board Member, Noon Academy
- Board Member, Lean Technologies
- Board Member, Trella
- Board Member, Mozn
- Board Member, Qunat
- Board Member, Tweeq
- Board Member, Raya Financing
Steve is the Founder of Business Start Up Qatar, a Partner at Soutien Group and the Chief Executive Officer of Solutions Four.
He has assisted more than fifty companies to establish in Qatar and plays a role in the startup ecosystem here. He is the host of “In the Game”, Qatar’s first sports podcast, a speaker at events and initiatives, a mentor for start-ups and scale-ups and an advisor to small/medium-sized enterprises.
In essence, he builds bridges between those who need help and those who can help in line with his purpose to advance, enhance and improve the ease of doing business in the State of Qatar and the Middle East & Africa.
An unconventional leader who started his career as an entrepreneur, Ahmad co-found Foodics in 2014, the fast growing startup that aims to revamp the restaurant management experience and the relationship between the consumers and restaurant owners.
Ahmad is a strong believer in the digital transformation scene in the F&B. Along with his team at Foodics, he looks forward to introduce new technologies to the market that will change how the consumers order food, .pay, and connect with their beloved brands.
YB Tuan Mohd Rafizi bin Ramli is the Minister of Economy effective 3rd December 2022, overseeing the nation's medium and long-term socio economic development planning.
Born in 1977, YB Tuan Rafizi Ramli holds a first-class degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from Leeds University, United Kingdom. He is a Chartered Accountant, with experience at Jeffreys Henry Chartered Accountants in London, and is also a member of the ICAEW and Malaysian Institute of Accountants (MIA).
His professional career began when he was appointed as the youngest manager in PETRONAS. More recently, he founded INVOKE, a non-profit organization dedicated to building expertise in technology in the field of political, economic and social change.
He is currently the Deputy President of the People's Justice Party (PKR) and Member of Parliament for Pandan.
Peter is CEO and co-founder of Blockchain.com, one of the world’s largest and most popular crypto platforms, serving tens of millions of consumers and thousands of institutions since 2011. Evolving from early Bitcoiner to developer to CEO of a multinational company, Peter has worked tirelessly to accelerate crypto adoption and build a financial system for the internet.
After co-founding and advising the company in its early days, Peter stepped into the role of CEO in 2014 and immediately raised $40M – the largest venture capital round for any crypto company at the time. His vision of crypto wallets serving as gateways to crypto – just as web browsers had for the internet – encouraged tech veterans like GV and entrepreneurs like Richard Branson to invest in the industry early.
Under Peter’s leadership, Blockchain.com has evolved into a leading crypto partner in both the retail and institutional domain. Its retail operations include a global exchange with more than $100M in daily trading volume and a robust brokerage with over 85M crypto wallets across 200 countries. In 2019, Peter led the development of an Institutional Markets arm that has since partnered with thousands of clients to trade $15B+, provide $8B+ of credit and structured debt, and create bespoke solutions for active trading, lending, mining, and DeFi.
What began as a small outfit in the center of York, England, has now grown into a distributed, office-based and remote hybrid team spanning more than 23 countries across six continents. World-class leaders formerly of Citadel, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, Coinbase, Uber, and Ripple dot the company’s ranks, and the talent and experience of its board of directors has no equal within crypto. Throughout extreme volatility, Peter has been a steady hand and a champion for transformation.
After a modest upbringing in rural America, Peter developed a global perspective living, studying, and working in the US, Europe, MENA, East Africa, and Asia. A World Economic Forum Technology Pioneer, he is frequently cited as an authority on cryptocurrencies and the potential impact they’ll have across the world.
Peter is passionate about crypto’s ability to provide access to financial freedom. With a long-term mindset, he believes crypto represents a multi-decade paradigm shift in how the world uses money. A developer at heart, he remains focused on providing truly useful products that people need, not just trading tools that people want. His vision is to build not just the largest crypto platform, but the largest financial services company in the world.
Josh Tetrick is CEO & co-founder of Eat Just, Inc., a food technology company with a mission to build a healthier, safer and more sustainable food system in our lifetimes. The company's expertise, from functionalizing plant proteins to culturing animal cells, is powered by a world-class team of scientists and chefs spanning more than a dozen research disciplines. Eat Just created one of America’s fastest-growing egg brands, which is made entirely of plants, and the world’s first-to-market meat made from animal cells instead of slaughtered livestock.
Prior to founding Eat Just, Tetrick led a United Nations business initiative in Kenya and worked for both former President Clinton and Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf.
As Fulbright Scholar, Tetrick taught schoolchildren in Nigeria and South Africa and is a graduate of Cornell University and the University of Michigan Law School.
Tetrick has been named one of Fast Company’s “Most Creative People in Business,” Inc.’s “35 Under 35” and Fortune’s “40 Under 40.” Eat Just has been recognized as one of Fast Company’s “Most Innovative Companies,” Entrepreneur’s “100 Brilliant Companies,” CNBC’s “Disruptor 50” and a World Economic Forum Technology Pioneer.
Besides her role as VinFast Global CEO, Thuy Le is Vingroup’s Vice Chairwoman in charge of international relations and corporate finance and investments to spearhead Vingroup’s global expansion plan with VinFast in the lead of such ambitious efforts.
Thuy first joined Vingroup in 2008, assuming positions as Vice Chairwoman from 2011 to 2014, and Vingroup’s CEO from 2012 to 2014. During this period, Vingroup successfully raised over US$1 billion from international investors and was recognized with various awards for the associated financial transactions.
Thuy Le returned to Vingroup in 2017 as Vice Chairwoman of Vingroup to oversee the development of VinFast, Vietnam’s first domestic automobile company, and led the successful launch of initial VinFast passenger cars and e-scooters within 21 months.
Under Thuy’s leadership, VinFast has developed its electric vehicle portfolio, ranging from e-scooters to e-bus and e-cars. The company has set up offices in North America and Europe and is looking to deliver its EVs to these markets in late 2022. Most recently, VinFast signed an MOU with the State of North Carolina to set up an electric vehicle and battery manufacturing complex.
Prior to joining Vingroup, Thuy was with Lehman Brothers. She has a quarter of a century of experience in the financial services, real estate industries and setting up new businesses in various sectors across the globe.
For more than 30 years, financier Robert Friedland has been recognized by leaders of the international financial sector and mineral resources industries as an entrepreneurial explorer, technology innovator and company builder. He has successfully developed a series of public and private companies which have been at the forefront of some of the world’s most notable mineral discoveries and mine developments including Fort Knox in Alaska, Voisey’s Bay in Canada, Oyu Tolgoi in Mongolia, Platreef in South Africa and Kamoa-Kakula in the DRC. Under his leadership, the Ivanhoe group and associated companies have raised more than US$30 billion on world capital markets since 1993. This capital has been invested in more than 30 nations, directed primarily at mineral resources and disruptive technologies.
Mr. Friedland is Executive Co-Chairman of Ivanhoe Mines, which is producing copper from the ultra-high-grade Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex. Ivanhoe Mines completed a C$300 million initial public offering on the TSX in 2012 at a C$504 market capitalization. Over the past ten years, the market capitalization of Ivanhoe Mines has increased to over approximately C$14 billion as at March 20, 2023. Today, Wood Mackenzie ranks Kamoa Kakula as the world’s fourth largest copper deposit.
In 1994, Mr. Friedland founded Indochina Goldfields Ltd., now known as Turquoise Hill Resources and completed a C$270 million initial public offering on the TSX in 1996. In 2000, the company acquired the exploration rights for Oyu Tolgoi. After raising more than C$7 billion in equity and debt capital to fund Oyu Tolgoi’s initial development, Oyu Tolgoi has become one of the world’s largest copper-gold mines globally. Oyu Tolgoi has the potential to operate for approximately 100 years from five known deposits.
From 1994 to 1996, Mr. Friedland served as Co-Chairman of Diamond Fields and played a prominent role in its IPO on the TSX in 1994. Assuming its co-chairmanship in 1994 after the discovery of high-grade nickel at Voisey’s Bay on Canada’s East Coast, Mr. Friedland guided its financing and development, and led negotiations for its subsequent sale to INCO for C$4.3 billion in 1996.
Since 2016, Mr. Friedland also has served as Co-Chairman of Sunrise Energy Metals Limited, a publicly listed Australian company that provides innovative and sustainable solutions for metals recovery and water treatment. It also is developing its Sunrise Nickel-Cobalt-Scandium Project, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, into a leading source of battery metals for the international electric-vehicle supply chain.
In the area of disruptive technology, Mr. Friedland is Chairman of I-Pulse Inc., a private United States company founded in 2007. I-Pulse is commercializing proprietary, controlled-energy technology that aims to achieve disruptive outcomes across a wide range of industries. The technology repeatedly compresses and releases pulses of electrical energy, typically in the range of billionths of a second. This technology underpins TyphoonTM, a proprietary system that uses pulse technology to undertake best in class geological surveys cost effectively in order to efficiently evaluate mineral deposits, oil and water to depths of up two kilometers below surface and across large land areas. Typhoon is owned by Ivanhoe Electric, an American minerals and exploration company focused on advancing its portfolio of electric metals projects located primarily in the United States, of which Mr.
Friedland is Executive Chairman. Ivanhoe Electric completed a $169-million initial public offering on the NYSE in June 2022.
Mr Friedland also is Chairman of VRB Energy, an international developer and manufacturer of grid-scale, vanadium redox battery energy-storage systems.
Mr. Friedland’s enterprise and leadership gained prominent, industry recognition in January 2016 when he was inducted into the prestigious Canadian Mining Hall of Fame. The citation acknowledged his company-building and exploration achievements, honoring him as “a dynamic, transformative force in the Canadian and international mining industries” and “one of the most recognized mining personalities and achievers in the world”. In December 2021, Mr. Friedland was inducted into the American Mining Hall of Fame in recognition of his outstanding lifetime achievements advancing the American and/or global mineral resources industry.