2019 SPEAKERS

Diego Abba is the CEO of italist.com, a global online platform that offers expertly-curated luxury imported from Italy, based in Los Angeles.Diego was the former CEO of Sleepy Giant, a fast growing game publisher and technology provider, participated by TPG Capital and CAA.  He also led, as VP...

FMCG expert in Commercial leadership across the GCC with Distributor, channel and lead customer management, having track record of diverse assignments across markets and categories with P&G, Kraft, Mondelez and J&J.

Janti Abdallah is the general manager of STS PayOne with more than 18 years of experience in electronic payments and information technology.In 2004, he joined the STS group to spearhead its focus on providing electronic payment solutions, and managed to expand this business resulting in spinning...

Mr. Mahmoud Fawzy, Head of Corporate Digital Channels at the Commercial International Bank (CIB), The Largest Private Bank in Egypt, in this role, he is managing the strategic development for the bank’s digital solutions aiming to avail superior and outstanding experience for CIB customers across...

Izzidin is the Chief Operating Officer of United Arab Bank in Sharjah, UAE and is part of the bank’s Executive Management team reporting to the CEO. He is responsible for bank’s strategy with regards to embracing and accelerating the digital transformation towards superior customers’ experience. He ...

Wael Alkhuzaei is a senior solution consultant at BPC Banking technologies. He received MBA from University of Strathclyde and holds a Bsc in Mathematics from University of Bahrain. Mr. Wael has more than 19 years of experience in payment industry. Working for big names in payment industry like...

Hammad is a union of technology development and creative thinking. His expert digital leadership and dynamic out of the box thinking has helped him grow his organizations from start-ups to successful businesses.Professionally, Hammad works as Vice General Manager of Bargo Ventures, A venture...

David Ashford is the Chief Information Officer at the ENTERTAINER, where he is responsible for the company’s e-business strategy and development.He led the transformation of the ENTERTAINER from a print-based publishing company to a data-driven 100% digital company with the launch of the...

Furqan’s expertise in shopping centre investment, underwriting, and operational finance is well-known across the region. He has extensive experience in all aspects of the shopping centre industry, most specifically in investment management and value creation.In previous management positions with...

Ferenc has started his career at Ernst&Young in 2001, and switched to the banking sector in 2005 joining K&H Bank (member of KBC group). Then he joined NESS Technologies as senior consultant in 2008, where he managed major IT related projects at a major Bank in Hungary. He joined CIB Bank...

Paul Boots is an “entrepreneur in residence” with experience in operational management, process optimisation, business development, and innovation in SME, banking, Government and start-up environments. Most recently, Paul was the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Beehive Group, the UAE’s first...

Creative pioneer, thought leader and innovator in the Broadcast, Social, TV and Brand engagement space with 20+ years media industry experience. Having a niche mix of traditional TV programming production expertise fused with executive digital engagement, content and emerging technology...

A well-rounded and seasoned banking professional with over 15 years serving the financial industry, underpinned by a strong academic background and a solid experience in treasury, derivatives, asset management and retail banking. He occupied the position of a Deputy General Manager, Head of...

Muhammad Chbib is the EVP of the Al Tayyar Group’s Online Business Unit and the Founder & CEO of tajawal, Al Tayyar Group’s technology lab in the online travel space.An internationally experienced manager, Muhammad Chbib served several successful startup organisations in Europe and the MENA...

Muhammad Chbib is the EVP of the Al Tayyar Group’s Online Business Unit and the Founder & CEO of tajawal, Al Tayyar Group’s technology lab in the online travel space.An internationally experienced manager, Muhammad Chbib served several successful startup organisations in Europe and the MENA...

Prajit Datta specializes in the use of blockchain technology for enhancing security in the financial sector. His presentations and talks on scope and significance of artificial intelligence, data science, and blockchain technology have been well-received at several national and international...

Bart Denolf is currently the CEO Franchise for the Sacoor Brothers group. Since he   joined the company in 2015 he has been actively increasing the presence in new markets.  Prior to joining the Sacoor Brothers group  he pursued a successful career at Pepe jeans group ( Pepe jeans, Hackett) from...

(Tanaz is the Founder & CEO of insydo, a search-centric city guide that provides people with curated recommendations and has gained a following of over 500,000+ unique visitors per month since its launch in January 2016. In September 2017, Tanaz launched her second venture, Brand Ripplr, a...

Mahip is a digital marketing strategist with over 10+ years combined Online and Mobile marketing experience, with an extensive focus on Performance Marketing, Mobile App Marketing, New User Acquisition, Revenue Generation & Strategic Alliances.A self-starter with the ability to translate...

Enaz Ebrahim,VP & Head of Prepaid Cards, FAB10+ years of experience in delivering optimal results and business value in high growth environments. Decisive and results-driven professional with bringing exceptional knowledge and expertise in Prepaid Card product development and enhancement...

Akef El Maghraby joined Banque Misr in August 2016 as its Vice Chairman. Prior to that, he spent 16 years with Citibank. He is responsible for the Lines of Business, including Corporate, Treasury, Investment, SMEs, Retail, Branches, Islamic Financing, Global Transaction Services and International...

Since graduating with a Marketing degree from the American University in Cairo, Ahmed assumed different roles in the advertising sphere; swinging from creative to media agencies, offline to online media planning and now on the client side.With a passion for marketing and communication, and after...

Ozgur Erkan, Middle East and North Africa Sales Manager, helps Payment Service Providers and Banks in growing their business.Ozgur spent three years as a sales engineer in different industries. After 3 years in engineering he decided to take a different path with more customer facing...

Syed Fahd Azam, Head Information Security managing the cyber & infrastructure security and business application user access rights of the bank.Holds MBA degree from SZABIST and graduated BS- Computer Engineering from SSUET. In addition of the degrees have international certifications and...

Amr is the founder of GoodsMart, He studied Mechanical Engineering, ERP systems and database analysis, he worked with several companies in more than 15 countries around the world, travelling helped him shape his personality, expanded his awareness and introduced him to a great diversity of people.

Mr Pawan Gadia, CEO - Retail & Online, Ferns N PetalsBorn in the cultural capital of India, Pawan Gadia hails Kolkata’s immense creative energy. An under graduate from Kolkata University, the intellectual mind has altered the face of retail as well as online floral and gifting industry in...

•    Lebanese/Canadian•    Married•    35 Years old•    Masters in Genetics from McGill University (Canada)•    MBA in Marketing from Concordia University (Canada)•    8 years in P&G (Dubai)•    5 years in E-business and Corporate Sales Department

Talented Marketer, passionate videographer and movie maker, Mohamed Hassib is the Regional Brand and Digital Marketing Manager of Americana’s QSR brand Hardees. Hassib has over 10 years of combined experience across EU, MENA and the GCC in digital marketing, mobile search, social media and digital...

Shafique R Ibrahim is the Head of Group IT, responsible for the overall IT Operations and spearheads digital transformation at Al Fardan Group, a renowned name in Gulf region active in the Forex, Global Remittance business, Financial Services, Jewels and precious stones and Real Estate...

Sridhar held a number of senior positions with Citibank and Lloyds Bank in India and the UK. He first joined Citibank in 1996, where he was responsible for setting up their e-commerce business before becoming the Digital Banking Head for Citibank India in 2003. He has also worked for Citibank in...

Mohamad Jaber is the Group Sales and Marketing Manager of the region's leading luxury retailer, Paris Gallery. He is in charge of the company's marketing, communications, worldwide franchises, and business development.Listed as “50 MOST INFLUENTIAL GLOBAL MARKETING LEADERS” 2018, awarded...

A perfectionist with a fondness for research and all things numerical. Her career has spanned over 13 years in Media, Marketing, Film Making, Events, IT and Journalism. After successfully running her own marketing venture, she decided to bow out of the usual grind and shift focus to genuinely make...

Eli is Head of Blockchain Investment Banking and a Managing Director at Boustead Securities (FINRA member and SEC Registered Broker Dealer) advising Blockchain companies on strategizing and executing Security Token Offerings. Eli is also a Managing Partner at Boustead Capital Partners, an...

An entrepreneur and Co-founder of Living Kool since 2014, driven by a passion to constantly be connected with the audience, a consumer oriented business was the way to go. Living Kool started as a discounted activity website but within months moved into innovative products and daily need...

‘A true entrepreneur is a doer, not a dreamer’. Sprii.com chief Sarah Jones is living proof of this. Bitten by the bug at just 14, Sarah set up a profitable eBay business importing items from across the globe and selling in the UK, igniting a love for e-commerce and developing an acute business...

Prior to joining the Bank of Lithuania, Marius Jurgilas worked as Economist at Norges Bank and the Bank of England, Researcher at the European Central Bank, and gained academic experience in the US. As Member of the Board of the Bank of Lithuania, he is in charge of payment services and their...

A senior retail executive with over 13 years’ experience in management, operations & branding. Creator of some retail innovative projects.

Faraz Khalid is the Chief Executive Officer of noon, a $1 billion joint venture between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund and prominent GCC investors. noon was born with the mission of building an ecosystem of homegrown digital companies from the region, for the region to...

Mohamed Khalil is a senior executive with two decades of international experience in Procter & Gamble. He is recognized as an expert in Go-To-Market, distributor operations & customer management. Mohamed has successfully led commercial roles & sales organizations with end-to-end...

Banking & Payments Consultant | Cross-Border Money Transfer Specialist | FinTech Podcast Co-Host |Autodidact | Quora Top Writer | Knowledge Philanthropist | Fintech Scout for VCs

Sanjay KhannaChief Information Officer RAKBANK Sanjay Khanna joined RAKBANK in September 2011 as Chief Information Officer where he is responsible for developing a vision for the Information Technology (IT) department, ensuring high quality of overall services to the Bank from the technology...

Mohamed is the Ecommerce Director at B.TECH helping build and grow the first truly omnichannel customer experience in Egypt. Mohamed started his professional career early while he was still studying Management & Entrepreneurship at Northeastern University in Boston in various fields ranging...

Since taking on the role in 2013, Debbie has worked hard with her Executive team to bring Novo Cinemas to new heights, from a standard cinema experience to an innovative entertainment hub through strategic partnerships, technological advancements, new experience offerings and alternative content...

Kanchan Kulkarni is a multi-talented entrepreneur with a golden touch, having succeeded in various stages of her life. Kanchan has gone from running her own, very successful real estate company in Dubai for 20 years to taking on a completely different challenge of starting an acting career which...

Pankaj Kundra is the Regional Head of Payments at Mashreq UAE. In this role, he has overall P&L responsibility Mashreq’s Payments Business including Consumer Credit Cards, Commercial Cards, Debit Cards and the Merchant Acquiring business. He is also responsible for driving all Innovation-linked ...

Mark is a seasoned retailer with 35 years of experience in leading major international, multi-regional, multi-cultural and multi-format retail, wholesale and FMCG companies. Specializing in developing and executing efficient store operations, improving the customer experience and loyalty engagement ...

General Manager - Personal Banking Group CBD is pleased to announce the appointment of Amit Malhotra. Prior to joining CBD, Amit was Senior Managing Director and Group Retail Banking Head at Al Hilal Bank in Abu Dhabi. Prior to moving to the UAE, he held senior retail and credit roles in Standard...

Shreyansh has over 8 years of work experience in Digital Marketing. Over all these years he has learned about both sides of digital landscape, vanity and performance and have been lucky enough to be associated with some of the buzziest brands and that has given him an exposure to handle large scale ...

Joined FSS in the beginning of 2018 looking after the MENA Region. Prior to that, Khaled has worked at Swift for the past 10 years managing a diverse community of financial services organisations, ranging from Central Banks, Commercial Banks, Market Infrastructures, Investment Managers, and...

Ronaldo Mouchawar is the co-founder and CEO of SOUQ.com, an Amazon company and a leading online retail and marketplace website in the Middle East.Since co-founding SOUQ.com in 2005, Ronaldo has overseen the company’s aggressive expansion over the years. As the pioneer of ecommerce in the...

Based in Dubai, UAE, Tarek Moussawer leads the strategic development and evolution of the Virgin Megastore brand throughout the MENA region including the UAE, Qatar, Egypt, Oman, Bahrain and Jordan.  Since joining the Virgin Megastore team in 2007, Tarek has helped strengthen the brand name and...

Sagheer is the Global COO for Habib bank limited(HBL). He is Responsible for building a corporate culture based on operational excellence & technology capabilities for fulfillment of client services to over 10 million customers HBL serve in 25 countries. He oversees the banks operations, shared ...

A payments and cards specialist with 20+ years experience.  A PCIP, post graduate in Strategic Business IT, passionate and knowledgeable in remittances, prepaid cards and foreign exchange services. Currently exploring fintech, artificial intelligence and blockchain in finance.

Walid Nagy, General Manager Retail Banking–National Bank of Kuwait - EgyptWalid’sleadership comes with a strong academic background as well as a rich experience that goes for over 20 years in different industries and in 8 countries. Academically, Walid is an Electrical and Communications Engineer...

An initial investor in Google and Amazon and investor in some FinTech startup across the Middle East, Europe and USA. VP of eStrategy at Saman Bank, helped the Bank to become one of the most innovative technological Banks in the Middle East with over 4 Million customers, and one the most used...

Dr. Khalid Al Midfa, Chairman of Sharjah Media City (Shams) since February 2017. He was the Director General of Sharjah Media Corporation from 2012 until Jan 2017 and worked as Sharjah Radio and TV manager during 2011.

After heading the digital department at Awok, Said joined SRPC (Saudi Media Group) to head the New E-commerce ALMALL which is an Online Fashion Marketplace in the Middle East. Said comes with a 10 years’ experience in E-commerce and holds a master degree in International Business and has the...

“Srinivasan Palani” has 15 years of International experience in Supply Chain operations, consulting, strategy planning and Omnichannel supply chain. Currently he works for “Al Futtaim Retail (Dubai)” as “Head of Supply chain/Logistics – Fashion”.Before joining “Al Futtaim group”, he is associated...

Passionate entrepreneur and creative mind behind mywaydress.com, mass customization platform that allows woman to design their own dress. Born and raised in Croatia, educated in Croatia, Austria and Japan. Spent 12 years in project management, mainly in banks, worked on projects across 2...

Mark Pilkington is a graduate of Oxford and INSEAD. After his MBA, he became CEO of Gossard, a lingerie brand, where he developed the Wonderbra, which became the top selling bra in the world, and won two Queen’s Awards for Exports, as well as the Council of Fashion Designers of America Award. He...

David Quaife runs Practicology’s Middle East division based in Dubai. He has considerable expertise in creating seamless customer journeys across online and offline touchpoints for consumers in the Middle East region, having worked for two of its major retail players.He joined Practicology in...

I am an ecommerce and digital marketing entrepreneur with over 14 years of industry experience. I come from a software development background with a indepth understanding of performance marketing. I have worked with several leading regional digital agencies and brands before venturing into...

19 Years of overall experience, with expertise in Global payments. 10+ years of experience in handling cross border payments.

Suresh Rajagopalan is an accomplished professional with over two decades years of experience in financial technology.  Suresh has held several management positions in leading banks throughout his career, has a proven track record in building, strategizing and transforming the IT landscape for...

Elisa Ramirez is Head of Digital in Sacoor Brothers, apparel retailer with presence worldwide. Previously, she was partner at Webtrekk Analytics, a customer intelligence firm specialized in Analytics and Marketing Automation. She has also worked in Nielsen in advertising measurement. Elisa has a...

25 years of hands on experience spanning across every function in the Supply Chain. Worked in diverse industry verticals like Engineering, Consumer Durables, FMCG & Retail. In Landmark Group since 2003, currently leading multiple supply chain transformation projects at a strategic...

Neeraj Rathi is a Chartered Accountant from Institute of Chartered Accountants of India.  He has over 20 years of experience working across various industries and counties.  He has worked with Citibank South Korea, Citibank Singapore and in this region he has worked with Noor Bank at Dubai and Bank ...

Daniel dos Reis is the Senior Portfolio Manager of Dubai Silicon Oasis Authority (DSOA) managing the venture capital investments. From 2012 till 2015 he was the Director of Mobily Ventures, the corporate venture capital unit of Mobily, KSA. Daniel started his professional career as a Management...

Leading the charge and at Dubai’s favourite Asian street food restaurants WOK BOYZ is its CEO and co-founder Gaurav Sabharwal. Proudly born and bought up in Dubai and after a successful 15-year corporate stint in some of the world’s largest companies, he has embraced his two passions – food and...

I have extensive experience in business & sales management since 1998, then I added to it the academicals knowledge and know how through ( MBA- 2011)& (CSM certified shopping center manager global, E- distance learning, facility management , shopping center professional school level 1&2 ...

Moiza has always loved puzzles and solving problems. She is addicted to technology and believes that tech is the key to arriving at global solutions to many of the issues that face our world today. She is passionate about using technology to improve the quality of our everyday lives.She has a truly ...

Arif Saiyad is the force behind Arif Saiyad & Associados Ventures (ASA Ventures)―a venture capital company which he founded in his native country, Portugal, in 2003. Currently headquartered in Dubai, Arif sits at the head of ASA Ventures which has over 30 portfolio B2B and B2C companies  under...

Mudit Saxena has worked in Retail banking in 5 countries in Middle East and Asia over the last 25 years with experience in both Islamic and Conventional banking . Currently he is the Head of Retail at Commercial Bank of Dubai (CBD) . The key responsibilities involve transforming the Islamic bank as ...

Sofya Shamuzova is the CEO and Founder of the Stars Dome Group, she has over two decades of extensive operating experience in real estate, retail, manufacturing, F&B, marketing and the e-commerce sectors with a portfolio of 6 businesses.  She serves as the CEO & Founder of Mall.Global, an...

Ghaith Shocair is the Chief Executive Officer of Shopping Malls at Majid Al Futtaim Properties, a position he has held since 2016Mr. Shocair leads the Majid Al Futtaim’s Shopping Malls Business Unit that comprises 23 shopping and leisure destinations in the UAE, Bahrain, Egypt, Lebanon, and...

Samar founded Jugnoo in 2014 with the vision to transform the Indian auto-rickshaw sector. Jugnoo is the leading on-demand hyperlocal transport and logistics player of India. Samar is a serial entrepreneur and a physicist by education. He has previously worked as a researcher at IBM and CERN. He is ...

Matthew is the Director of Marketing at Cleartrip, the Middle East’s largest and fastest growing online travel agencies. Matthew has over a decade of experience in marketing and has worked with global and local brands in telecommunications, travel and hospitality, financial services, automotive and ...

Subroto Som is the EVP and Group head of Retail Banking Group at MASHREQ BANK. In this capacity he oversees all aspects of Mashreq’s Retail Banking, Business Banking, Payments, Private Banking and Wealth Management business across the Group.Som is a senior consumer banking professional with over 30 ...

(As a Co-Founder and Editor-in-Chief of insydo, Siobháin has used her passion for content to shape the voice and brand identity of insydo. This search-centric product provides people with curated recommendations and has gained a following of over 500,000 unique visitors per month since its launch...

Ananth Srivatsa currently leads the remittance business at First Abu Dhabi Bank. A marketing and business leader with over 15 years’ experience, Ananth has held senior roles in global organizations managing large geographies, and has significant experience across financial services, FMCG and...

As the Founder and CEO of Homeshopping.pk, I am responsible for leading the organizational vision of forming a world with convenient and ready access to all categories of products, everywhere in Pakistan and beyond. As the name suggests, the idea behind Homeshopping.pk is empowering the people of...

Alex Tchablakian has worked 8 years in the industry. Currently he is the COO of LetsTango.com, managing key areas of Operations and Business Development. Previous work experiences include a Sales and Marketing executive position in CompuMe/Tecbuy.

Abdul Thunayan is a seasoned management executive with 20 years of experience leading operations and marketing strategy for $200 million+ enterprises. Currently, he is the founder/CEO of Retail Linx, a retail platform connecting emerging brands with vacant retail space, iVANZi a curated online...

Started her career in Consulting and now 5 years later, heads ecommerce sales and marketing for Jacky’s Electronics, one of UAEs Power Retailers. Passionate about seamless omnichannel retailing with a keen eye for digital trends.

Dr. Bernd van Linder is an international banker with more than 20 years of hands-on experience. He built his career at ABN AMRO Bank Netherlands before moving to the GCC region where he was a General Manager Treasury of Saudi Hollandi Bank in Saudi Arabia before becoming CEO of the same bank in...

Hassan Waqar has been recognised as one of the top 500 Global Leaders of the Islamic Economy 2018 by Islamica500. He's a keen entrepreneur and pioneer whose establishing Ummah Finance, a UK based digital platform that will provide shariah-compliant financial products and services to...

JuE Wong, Global CEO of Moroccanoil has a robust track record of propelling emerging brands to the mainstream while globalizing established brands in the USA and internationally, working with such brands as Cargill Inc., PepsiCo, Dial Corp., Murad Inc., NV Perricone MD Ltd., ZO Skin Health by...