A message from the Chief Executive Officer,
Gaby Fadel

I am honoured and delighted to have been appointed Chief Executive Officer of the Arab Bankers Association, with effect from 1 April. I know the Association well not only from my many years residing in London, which have included 23 years heading the London branch of Byblos Bank Europe, but also from the time I have spent as the Association’s Deputy CEO over the past year.

I would like to pay tribute to George Kanaan, who served as CEO since 2009. George revived the Association after it had passed through some difficult times, and he has been responsible for turning it into the vibrant and sustainable organisation that it is today. The Arab banking community in London and in the Middle East owes George a huge debt of gratitude.

George has spent many decades fostering good relationships between the financial communities of London and the Middle East and, as our Honorary Chairman, he will continue to do this.

In my new role, I also look forward to working with our new Chairman, Fawzi Dajani, of National Bank of Kuwait International, and our new Vice Chairman, Yassir Ibrahim, from Arab National Bank in London.

I am pleased to be able to report that our corporate membership continues to grow and to diversify. We welcome not only Arab and international banks, but also professional service firms, such as auditors, lawyers and others, and boutique firms providing specialist financial services.

We will be holding an exciting series of events over the next few months, including our real estate seminar, our Egypt Business Forum, and a seminar on internal audit standards. We are also planning events on Libya, and on Section 166 inspections.

I urge you to log on to our website regularly so that you can keep in touch with what the Association is doing and also stay abreast of current news and commentary related to Arab and international banking. In February, we published our first Association newsletter, which will appear three times per year and will complement our annual publication, Arab Banker magazine.

Over the past few months, George and I have been meeting as many of our members as possible, in anticipation of George’s handover to me. Although the hand-over is complete, I will continue to reach out to members, and to the wider Arab banking community. I will always be eager to hear your news, and to discuss how we can involve you in the work of our Association.

Best wishes

Gaby Fadel

Chief Executive Officer