Randolph Bell

Director, Global Energy Center, Atlantic Council

Randolph Bell is the Director of the Atlantic Council’s Global Energy Center, where he oversees the Center’s research and programs in Washington and elsewhere, including the annual Atlantic Council Global Energy Forum in Abu Dhabi. He also serves as the Co-Director of the Atlantic Council’s Task Force on US Nuclear Energy Leadership. He joined the Global Energy Center in 2017 as its Director of Business Strategies. From 2014–2016, Mr. Bell led the launch of the Center as Director of Business Development and New Ventures for the Atlantic Council.

From 2011–2014, Mr. Bell was managing director at the International Institute for Strategic Studies–US, where in addition to holding overall responsibility for the operations and programming of the IISS’s Washington, DC office he published extensively on African, South Asian-, and cyber security issues. From 2010–2011, he was manager of national security at the Markle Foundation, where he worked on cyber security, intelligence community information sharing, and technology policy issues.

Mr. Bell has an MPP from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, where he was a Public Service and Belfer International and Global Affairs Fellow, and graduated magna cum laude from Harvard College.

Alexandra Bause

Co-Founder, Investment Director & Head of VentureLabs, Apollo Health Ventures

Alexandra is a co-founder at Apollo Ventures, a biotech company builder and investment fund focused on developing interventions, that improve human health and longevity. At Apollo, Alexandra is leading the venture creation programs that aim at founding new biotech startups targeting the aging process at a molecular level. She is also managing the pipeline and diligence process for external investment opportunities, predominantly focusing on preclinical stage biotech companies.

Before joining Apollo Ventures, Alexandra worked with The Boston Consulting Group where she specialized in biopharma strategy, market assessment and asset diligence. Her PhD studies at Harvard Medical School were focused on investigating the molecular mechanisms that contribute to cellular aging and could be targeted to increase mammalian health span. She is also a trained pharmacist with expertise in pharmaceutics and pharmacology.

Stephen Barnett

Executive Director, Business Development, Abu Dhabi Global Market

Mr Steve Barnett leads the Business Development Division of Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) overseeing the strategy and business development to support ADGM’s continued growth as an international financial centre. Mr Barnett first worked on the ADGM development initiative in September of 2013 as a Partner with the Strategy & Operations consulting practice in Deloitte. He made the permanent move to his current role in 2014.

Over more than 30 years of industry experience, Mr Barnett has held numerous leadership roles within major financial services consultancy firms including leading Deloitte’s Risk and Regulation practice and their Operational Effectiveness practice for buy-side and sell-side capital markets firms.

Mr Barnett holds a Bachelor of Humanities degree from the University of London and is a Fellow of the Association of Corporate Treasurers.

Thomas Bardawil

Director, Plug & Play Smart Cities

Kamran S. Bajwa

Partner, Kirkland & Ellis LLP

Kamran Bajwa handles highly complex international legal matters with a focus on matters relating to the Middle East and emerging markets. Kamran leads the Middle East practice for Kirkland & Ellis which has become the largest law firm globally for Private Equity and M&A. Kamran represents Middle East sovereign wealth funds and family offices for investments into the U.S., Europe, and China and he also represents US companies conducting M&A activity and establishing joint ventures in the Middle East. He has extensive experience in all areas of corporate law including securities regulations, mergers and acquisitions, private equity, investment funds, corporate finance and Islamic finance.

Prior to rejoining Kirkland in 2011, Kamran spent eight years as a corporate lawyer and business advisor in Dubai, United Arab Emirates and Cairo, Egypt. His experience during this time included serving as the Chief Legal Officer for EFG-Hermes, where he established the first in-house legal department and led several major new product launches, investment fund formations and corporate acquisitions.

Kamran is a graduate of the University of Michigan Law School (1999) and is fluent in Arabic.

Jamil Asfour

Executive Director, Technology Partnerships, Abu Dhabi Investment Office

Jamil Asfour is the Executive Director of Technology Partnerships at the Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO). He brings a unique blend of technical and business acumen when focusing on operational excellence and business impact through digital disruption. As a ‘techie’, Jamil has hands on experience in ubiquitous computing, data centers, IoT, machine learning and artificial intelligence. Throughout his career, Jamil has identified gaps stalling innovation, organizational integration and growth pre and post M&A deals. He has also led the development of long-term global technology partnerships within government and private sector organizations. Jamil brings more than 18 years of experience working for Fortune 500 companies (Apple, IBM, HPE, E&Y) across the globe. He has held several executive positions, managed special and secret projects including more than 20 M&A deals. Jamil’s recent work experience focused on developing ubiquitous computing service initiatives to shape privacy and security policies for government and consumer entities. Jamil holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Electrical Engineering specializing in Cryptography from The University of Texas at Austin and two postgraduate degrees, a Diploma in Management and Leadership from MIT and an MBA from The University of Oxford. He also holds over 10 certificates in various technology specializations and is an active member of several engineering societies in the US, UK, Saudi, Jordan and Australia. He is also a widely known contributor to the Global Innovation Index and the Global Connectivity Index.

Fadi Arbid

Founding Partner & Chief Investment Officer, Amwal Capital Partners

Fadi is the Founding Partner and CIO of Amwal Capital Partners based in Riyadh.

Prior to co-founding Amwal Capital Partners, Fadi was the Founding Partner of Amwal AlKhaleej, a leading MENA private equity firm based in Riyadh. Earlier in his career, Fadi held various consulting, banking, and corporate positions working as an Engagement Manager at Booz Allen Hamilton in Europe and the Middle East, as an associate at Citigroup’s Schroder Salomon Smith Barney in the Investment Banking division in London, and as a Brand Manager for German Multinational Company Henkel in Paris.

Fadi serves on the boards and committees of several private companies across the region. Fadi also serves on the Wharton School Global Executive Board, and is a YPO member, Riyadh Chapter.

Fadi holds an MBA from the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania and masters from the Lancaster University Management School, and Nantes Graduate School of Management. Fadi is fluent in English, French, Arabic and Italian.

Marina Antonopoulou

Marine Program Lead, Emirates Nature - WWF

With more than 15 years of experience in nature conservation and environmental policy, Marina is Head of the Marine Programme of Emirates Nature-WWF, the UAE’s leading non-profit organisation linked with the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) global network. An avid diver, she developed an early passion for the marine environment and coastal communities. She holds an Environmental Science Masters’ Degree with the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow and a Diploma on International Oceans Law and Policy with the University of Virginia. Marina’s experience ranges from field-based conservation, environmental planning, to government and policy engagement in the UAE and MENA region. Since joining Emirates Nature-WWF in 2010, Marina has been instrumental in reshaping its marine conservation strategy placing a stronger focus on the importance of marine ecosystems for the long-term sustainability of the UAE’s society and economy. She has represented Emirates Nature and WWF International in various international policy fora; such as the Convention of Biological Diversity, the Ramsar Convention for the Conservation of Wetlands, and the Convention of Migratory Species. Her ambition is to drive awareness of businesses and policy makers towards the socio-economic benefits of healthy marine ecosystems.

Yusuf Abdulla Yusuf Akbar Alireza

Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer, ARP Global Capital

Mr. Alireza recently moved to Dubai, UAE in August 2017 after being away from the Middle East for the past 30 years. In June 2018, him and his partner, Krishna Rao, have set up an alternative investment platform called ARP Global Capital Limited. The fund management company is registered in the DIFC (Dubai International Financial City) and invests in global markets.

From 2012 to 2016 Mr. Alireza was the Chief Executive Officer of Noble Group, at the time, the largest Asian commodity firm and a Fortune 100 company.

Mr. Alireza started his career at Goldman Sachs & Co where he spent 20 years working in their NY, London and HK offices. His last role was as President of Goldman Sachs Asia and a member of the firm’s Global Management Committee. He began working at Goldman Sachs New York in 1992, transferring to the firm’s London office in 1997 and becoming the Head of EMEA sales and structuring efforts. He relocated to Hong Kong in 2008, where he managed the Asia Pacific Sales and Trading Businesses. In 2004 he became the first Arab Partner in the 140-year history of the firm and in 2010 became the only Arab to ever be elected to the firm’s Global Management Committee and at the time was the youngest member of the committee.

Mr. Alireza serves on the Board of the National Bank of Bahrain (NBB), as well as on the NBB Executive Committee & Nomination and Remuneration Committee, the board of Bahrain Economic Development Board (EDB), the Global Board of Room to Read, the Board of the Center for Contemporary Arab Studies Georgetown University as well as on the board of Bahrain Ship Repairing & Engineering Company.

Mr. Alireza grew up in Bahrain (Dual Bahrain and UK Nationality) but moved to the US to attend university in 1992. He received a joint master’s and bachelor’s degree from the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Services at Georgetown University, graduating with highest honors and completing both the degrees in 4 years. He completed his bachelor’s studies in international economics and econometrics, pursuing a master’s degree in Arab Studies and international relations and affairs.

Mr. Alireza is married to Dina Khreino-Alireza and they have three children.

Fahad Al Sharekh

Co-Founder & General Partner, Tech Invest

Founded TechInvest in 2015 to provide an opportunity for Middle East investors to obtain exposure to private investment opportunities in the technology sector. Techinvest advised and structured several deals in early, growth and late stage VC totaling over $600m in money raised. Over 21 years’ experience in global business development, with expertise and specialization in the IT and VC field. Initiated and executed targeted strategies to facilitate joint ventures, partnerships, startups, account generation and public listings of holdings in several capital financial markets including NASDAQ, KSE and DIFC. As CEO of Sakhr Software, he received 3 US patents from US PTO office for Sakhr’s proprietary technologies. Played key role in founding 1st Saudi Arabia ISP AWalNet which was acquired by STC in 2006. Developed the first Multilingual Speech to Speech app 'S2S', Language Buddy launched on the App Store in 2009 and was one of the first adopters of "The Cloud". Initiated and supervised the transformation of the 30 year old family IT business company and publicly listing the company on KSE in 2006 under the new name Al Alamiah Technology Group ATG.

Fahad is currently Vice Chairman of Global Investment House – KSA, Fahad is also on the Advisory Board of the Annual Investment Meeting (AIM) in the UAE, which is the premier foreign direct investment-focused event and an initiative of the UAE Ministry of Economy. Fahad is a consultant at the Kuwait Direct Investment Promotion Authority, KDIPA. Previously a Board Member and subsequently Chairman, of Al Mal Investment Company, which is listed on the Kuwait Stock Exchange, and served on several boards including ATG, Saftec, AwalNet. Fahad serves as a director on the Board of CODED, the First Coding Academy in the GCC, which educates and trains participants in software development and programming using world-class curriculum and instruction by industry experts. The Kuwait-based company is aimed at young men and women across MENA, with engagement on Barmej.com (CODED’s online school) exceeding 200,000 coders (and future entrepreneurs).

Abdullah Al Shaksy

Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Phaze Ventures

Abdullah Al-Shaksy is the Co-Founder and CEO of Phaze Ventures, General Partner of SparkLabs Energy accelerator, Board Member of Akeed, eMushrif, PhazeRo and Shaksy Group, and board observer at Interface Fluidics. Abdullah previously headed Group Operations and Investments at Shaksy Group. Abdullah has had over 10 years’ experience managing both public and private equity portfolios. Prior to this Abdullah studied Mathematics & Computer Science at University of Toronto, trained at Investcorp’s INSEAD Leadership Program, as well as Dubai Bank Investment division, and has been a guest lecturer at Harbour.Space University high-tech entrepreneurship program.

Phaze Ventures is a venture capital firm and innovation platform founded to transform the region by unlocking the untapped potential of our youth, start ups and corporates. Headquartered in Oman, our goal is to enable innovation through early stage investments and strategic partnerships.

Our insights are informed by our deep collaborations, network and technical team and our focus is on early stage technology investments from pre-seed to series-A.

Areije Al Shakar

Senior Vice President, Bahrain Development Bank; Fund Manager, Al Waha Venture Capital Fund of Funds

Areije Al Shakar has 16 years of experience in banking and entrepreneurship. In her current role at Bahrain Development Bank (BDB), she is a Senior Vice President heading the Development Services Division and leads the fund management team of the Al Waha Venture  Capital  Fund of Funds (Al Waha Fund) (US$ l 00 Million Venture Capital Fund of Funds) as Fund Manager. Her role and involvement at the bank includes coaching,  mentorship,  startup  seed funding, and entrepreneur development. She has been involved in the development of several support services for entrepreneurs, namely her role in establishing BDB's Rowad Program, a holistic entrepreneur support platform and SeedFuel-Rowad, startup funding program part  of  the Global Accelerator Network.

She has worked in reputable organizations such as lnvestcorp, Citibank, BNP Paribas and Lehman Brothers on the Treasury, Investment Management and Advisory side. She holds a Master's of Science in Public Policy and Management, from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, a Bachelor of Commerce in Finance, from the John Molson School of Business, Concordia University, and is a Certified Business Coach and Mentor, from the Chartered Management Institute, UK.

Jassim Al Seddiqi

Chief Executive Officer, Abu Dhabi Financial Group

Jassim Alseddiqi is the Chief Executive Officer of ADFG. He has been at the helm of ADFG since its establishment in 2011, transforming it into one of the leading and fastest growing investment groups in the MENA region with assets under management of c. US$ 13 bn. Alseddiqi is known for his dynamic and innovative approach, having pioneered many investment strategies in the region.

Alseddiqi is the Chairman of Gulf Finance House (GFH), Eshraq Properties, Khaleeji Commercial Bank and The Entertainer. He also serves on the boards of the following companies: First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB), Abu Dhabi Capital Group, ADNOC Distribution and Dana Gas.

Alseddiqi holds a BSc in Electrical Engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and an MSc in Electrical Engineering from Cornell University. He has also served as a noted lecturer at the Abu Dhabi-based Petroleum Institute.

Thamer Al Saeed

Chief Investment Officer, Mad’a Investment Company

Mr. Thamer Al Saeed brings with him more than 18 years of experience in the Financial and Investment sector, where he worked for international and local players in the industry. Currently he is managing the overall investment activity of Mad’a Investment Company, a private equity based in KSA and direct investment deals with focusing on managing the capital markets portfolio locally and internationally. He has been a columnist with Al Jazeera News for the past 12 Years and is a member of the Saudi Economic Association. Previously he has managed more than SAR ~5 Bn in AUMs. He was instrumental in establishing and structuring a family holding company (Family offices) as well as licensing different types of investment funds (Equity, Real Estate, Fixed Income etc..). In his career he has closed more than 18 acquisitions in several sectors. He holds a bachelor’s degree in business along with a Diploma in Computer Science.

Mustafa Al Rawi

Assistant Editor-in-Chief, The National

Mustafa is an assistant editor in chief at The National, and an accomplished journalist and broadcaster, with over 19-years' experience working in the UK, the UAE and the wider Middle East. He has interviewed a number of international business leaders including Mubadala's Khaldoon Al Mubarak, BP's Bob Dudley and Emaar's Mohamed Alabbar. He was The National's business editor for four and a half years. He is a published author and a regular public speaker and moderator at events and conferences.

Abdulmohsin Al Omran

Founder & Chief Executive Officer, The Family Office Co. BSC

Abdulmohsin Al Omran is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of The Family Office Co. BSC(c) (“The Family Office”), and Chairman of the Board of Petiole Asset Management AG, the investment arm of The Family Office, based in Zurich, Switzerland.

Prior to founding The Family Office in early 2004, Abdulmohsin was part of the private wealth management team at Goldman Sachs in London. He started his financial career at Gulf International Bank in 1988 after which he worked in reputable financial institutions such as Saudi International Bank, Riyad Bank and Investcorp.

Abdulmohsin holds a degree in industrial management with a finance major from King Fahad University of Petroleum and Minerals, and an MBA from City University, London.

Saud Hassan Al Nowais

Commercial Counselor for the United Arab Emirates to the United States of America

Saud Al Nowais is the current Commercial Counselor for the United Arab Emirates to the United States of America, since being appointed in July 2009. Saud has focused on strengthening the bilateral trade relationship between the US and the UAE, assisting both countries in identifying mutually beneficial trade and investment opportunities. Saud operates at all levels of government and business in a continued effort to bring prosperity and growth to both economies as well as facilitate the development of commercial relationships between the two nations.

Previously, Saud held a managerial position at the Executive Affairs Authority of Abu Dhabi (EAA) in the Economic Department. He worked on energy-related projects and programs, such as oil and gas initiatives, alternative sources of energy and the UAE’s nuclear program. He also worked on environmental and social issues in tandem with industry representatives to affect positive change throughout the country. The Executive Affairs Authority is a government entity that supports the Chairman of the Executive Council of Abu Dhabi, H.H. Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi & Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces. EAA is responsible for creating policy and the implementation of special projects in the Emirate.

Saud completed a master’s degree in Strategic Intelligence & Security Studies from the U.S. National Defense University - College of International Security Affairs in Washington, DC. He obtained his bachelor’s degree in International Relations from the American University of Sharjah (AUS). Saud graduated from the American Community School of Abu Dhabi (ACS).

Yousuf Al Mulla

Co-Founder & Managing Partner, E11 Capital

Yousuf started his career as an entrepreneur before joining the executive-level of Dubai Government; where, he led and took part in strategic innovation-related and Economic development projects. From 2012 till March 2018, Yousuf was the Group Chief Strategy Officer of Dubai Holding where he focused on investment strategy, innovation & digitalization, and strategy & business plan development. Currently, he is the Co-Founder and Managing Partner of E11 Capital, which is a global VC based in UAE & San Francisco that focuses on investing and globalizing cutting-edge pre-growth startups. In addition, he is involved with several strategic government initiatives to promote and enhance entrepreneurship ecosystem in UAE and he is an advisor to senior leadership in UAE government. He sets on boards of few tech & non-tech startups. He regularly mentors entrepreneurs and he launched a startup competition that focuses on enhancing entrepreneurship amongst Emirati university students.

He holds an Global Executive MBA from INSEAD, MPA from Lee Kuan School of Public Policy at the National University of Singapore (NUS) and a BSc in Business Administration with concentration in Corporate Finance from Marshall Business School at University of Southern California (USC).

His Excellency Waleed Al Mokarrab Al Muhairi

Investment Committee, Deputy Group Chief Executive Officer & Chief Executive Officer, Alternative Investments & Infrastructure, Mubadala Investment Company

Waleed serves as Mubadala’s Deputy Group Chief Executive Officer and Chief Executive Officer of Alternative Investments & Infrastructure.

As Deputy Group CEO, Waleed has strategic oversight of the company’s broad investment portfolio and special projects at the group level, while ensuring that the company’s four platforms are coordinating efficiently. In addition, he leads the healthcare, real estate & infrastructure, and capital investments portfolios.

Prior to joining Mubadala, Waleed worked with the UAE Offsets Program Bureau as a Senior Project Manager. Past roles also include working with McKinsey & Company as a commercial and governmental consultant.

Waleed holds a Master’s Degree in Public Policy from Harvard University, USA, and a Bachelor of Science Degree in Foreign Service from Georgetown University, USA.

Nabyl Al Maskari

Executive Chairman, Al Maskari Holding

Mr. Nabyl Al Maskari is Executive Chairman of Al Maskari Holding (AMH). AMH is the privately-owned holding company of the Al Maskari family portfolio. AMH traces its foundation to 1968 with the establishment of the Al Maskaria Group in Abu Dhabi to engage in petroleum trading and oil field services. AMH has evolved over the past 50 years and today is comprised of diversified enterprises with international investments and operations.

Mr. Al Maskari currently serves as Vice-Chairman of AMH as well as a board director on select subsidiaries and joint venture partnerships. Prior to joining his family conglomerate as the third generation of leadership, Mr. Al Maskari conducted strategic engagements in the financial, petroleum, and public sectors as a management consultant for McKinsey & Company.

Mr. Al Maskari sponsors philanthropic initiatives in Africa and Asia through his family's non-profit foundation. He is a Fellow of the Aspen Institute's Middle East Leadership Initiative and actively supports high-impact entrepreneurs as a Board Member of Endeavor UAE.

Mr. Al Maskari received his Master of Business Administration with Distinction from Yale University’s School of Management, graduated Summa Cum Laude Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Rollins College, and is an alumnus of Choate Rosemary Hall.