Anne Abraham currently serves as an Independent Non-Executive Director on the Boards of Metrod Holdings Berhad and KPJ Healthcare Berhad. Anne Founded LeadWomen in 2011 to focus on developing and advancing women leaders in line with the Malaysian government’s aspirational target of 30% women on boards.
Anne was also Recognised as a thought leader in diversity and inclusion both locally and regionally, having over 20 years of corporate experience in several leadership positions in the fields of sales, marketing, alliances and operations in global technology companies. Her previous roles include Country Manager of SAP Malaysia and Managing Director Cisco Malaysia.
Not to mentioned, Anne also Co - Founded of the Malaysian Chapter of the 30% Club, a global business campaign lobbying for increased women representation on the boards of Malaysian PLCs. Nontheless, Anne holds a B.A. in Mathematics from Essex University, UK and obtained her Higher National Diploma of Computer Studies from Plymouth Polytechnic, UK.
With over 15 years in financial services, Oz is a professional with an extensive experience in wholesale and retail banking, as well as a recognised leader in Islamic finance. He has held a number of senior management roles with international exposure in the UK, the Middle East and Asia. In his early career, he distinguished himself in innovating Islamic finance solutions across various jurisdictions and has advised governments on Islamic finance regulation.
He is credited with material contributions to the development of the Global Sukuk market. In 2018, he oversaw the issuance of the award-winning, World’s First UN SDG Sukuk issuance and represented a Malaysian mission to the UNGA to discuss Islamic finance and its role in achieving the UN SDGs.
In recent years, Oz has established himself as a thought leader in the social and environmental impact sectors within the Banking and Value-Based Intermediation (VBI) community – VBI is an initiative for Malaysian Islamic banks to refocus operations from bottom line to triple bottom line, incorporating social and environmental impact considerations along with economic return. Oz is considered an expert in Sustainability within banking.
Oz has a Bachelor’s degree from University College London, a Master’s degree from the University of Bristol and received an MBA with distinction from London Business School’s Executive MBA program. In addition, he also holds a Corporate Director Certificate from Harvard Business School, and certificates for Sustainability from both Harvard Business School and London Business School.
Prior to becoming the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Al Rajhi Bank Malaysia, Oz was the CEO of HSBC Amanah. He is also the Chair of the Malaysian Financial Services JC3 (Joint Committee on Climate Change) Sub-Committee 4 on Engagement and Capacity Building and a Council Member of the Association of Islamic Banking and Financial Institutions Malaysia. He is also a Founder & board member of a UK FinTech company, mmob, specialising in Open Banking and Open Finance technology infrastructure.
Bertug is a Global Strategy & Operations Lead at Revolut, based in the United Kingdom. His role focuses on geographical expansion and new product development to support Revolut in building a global financial superapp. Prior to joining Revolut, Bertug worked at Oliver Wyman for nearly 8-years where he led multiple engagements with leading financial institutions across EMEA and Asia-Pacific.
Bertug has extensive experience in strategy, business development & expansion and digital transformation along with pricing and profitability. Bertug has a BA degree in Industrial Engineering from Bogazici University, Turkey.
Daeng is the Co-founder & COO of Kestrl, an app that helps Muslim to grow their wealth without compromising their belief. He met his Co-founder whilst studying for their MBAs together at University of Cambridge Business School.
Kestrl is a part of the Cambridge Accelerator programme and the CMS Accelerator. Daeng has been responsible in establishing and growing the company tech team based in Malaysia. Kestrl is also recently announced as the partner to help develop Bank Islam’s personal financial management (PFM) offering in their new digital banking app.
After graduating with a First in Economics from the University of Exeter, Daeng moved back to Malaysia to pursue his interest in the Islamic Finance industry. This was where he developed a lifelong passion for using financial instruments to achieve a better economic outcome for society.
Dan is a Partner for Oliver Wyman Digital within Financial Services based in the Hong Kong office. He specializes in the development and launching of new digital business models, products and services and has worked across Asia, Europe and North America.
In doing this he has supported global clients to digitally transform their existing businesses and also launch new greenfield ventures on modern, low cost technology stacks using agile and lean ways of working. Most recently he has guided a large UK corporate FI to launch a new virtual bank targeting SME customers.
Daud Vicary Abdullah is the Managing Director of DVA Consulting, an Islamic Finance Advisory and a Trustee at Gateway Global LLP. He is the former President and CEO of INCEIF-The Global University of Islamic Finance.
Former Global Leader for Islamic Finance at Deloitte. Former CEO of two start up Islamic Banks in Malaysia. In “retirement” he focuses on using his experience to support SRI and SDG initiatives and young entrepreneurs.
He chairs the Advisory Boards at IslamicMarkets.com and FASSET. He is a member of the Board of Trustees at the RFI-Foundation and the OtherDOTS Foundation. He graduated from Bristol University with BSc (Econ) in Economic and Social History. Is a CPIF (Chartered Professional in Islamic Finance) and a FCPA (Fellow of CPA Australia).
Dr Ashraf is the founder of MindSpring Sdn Bhd, whose tag line is Empowering Minds, Unleashing Potential. He is currently the Chairman of Waafi Bank LTD and a Shariah Committee Member for HSBC Amanah.
He has a BSc in Mechanical Engineering, Master’s in Business Administration, Post Graduate Diploma in Islamic Studies, PHD in Islamic Finance. In association with the Charted Institute of Islamic Finance (CIIF), Dr Ashraf is heavily invested in developing the next generation of Islamic Finance professionals.
Imran is the Director of Islamic Finance at the National Australia Bank and developed the first and multi award-winning Islamic business banking offering in Australia. He is the author of A Comparative Study of Islamic Finance in Australia and the UK (Routledge, 2022) and is also the host of the podcasts Muslim Money and Arabic with Imran Lum.
Previously, Imran was appointed by the Foreign Minister to the Board of the Australia-ASEAN Council, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and was an Honorary Research Fellow at the Australian Catholic University.
Imran was ranked in the top 500 who make the Islamic Economy by ISLAMICA 500 and he was the 2019 Corporate Winner for the 40 Under 40 Most Influential Asian-Australians. Imran has a PhD in Islamic Studies from the Melbourne Law School and the Asia Institute at the University of Melbourne.
Elmie is responsible for overseeing AIA PUBLIC Takaful Bhd. as the Family Takaful Operator within AIA Malaysia. His role is to develop and propel the Takaful business to a leadership position in Malaysia by maximizing and leveraging on the capabilities and business synergies in AIA Malaysia.
Prior to becoming AIA PUBLIC Takaful’s CEO, Elmie held several roles within AIA since he joined the company in 2011. He previously held the roles of Chief Agency Officer, Head of Channel Management and Head of Operations and Partnership, contributing to his breadth of experience within the industry. When AIA completed its acquisition of ING Malaysia, he successfully oversaw the integration of the two Takaful businesses, where he focused on integrating the distribution channels, sales staff, various product lines and the development of a new business strategy.
Elmie has 25 years of industry experience and has held various senior leadership roles within several prominent Takaful Operators in Malaysia. He has a Bachelor of Science from University Malaya and is a Fellow Chartered Islamic Finance Professional (F.CIFP). Elmie is also RFP Shariah RFP and FMII qualified.
He is currently the Chairman of the Malaysian Takaful Association (MTA) and is on the board of the Islamic Banking and Finance Institute Malaysia (IBFIM), Chartered Institute of Islamic Finance (CIIF) and Insurance Services Malaysia (ISM).
Irfan Khan is a sought-after entrepreneur and leader within the financial services industry. Irfan’s leadership and expertise have made a groundbreaking impact on the Embedded Finance sector globally through the creation of mmob’s platform.
Irfan built his career in finance and founded a successful B2C peer-to-peer investment fintech. In 2020, Irfan turned his efforts towards improving partnerships between incumbents and third-party providers and mmob’s embedded finance platform was born. As CEO, Irfan uses his knowledge to elevate the discourse surrounding embedded finance and drive mmob’s growth across the UK and ASEAN region.
Irfan is an advocate for diversity within financial services and uses his platform to independently mentor start-up companies from underrepresented communities. He was named as one of the Financial Technology Report’s Top 50 Financial Technology CEOs of 2022 and the Financial Times’ 100 most influential BAME (Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic) leaders in UK Tech in 2019.
In this country leadership role, Junior will oversee Zurich’s businesses in Malaysia, ensuring strategies and foundations are in place to enhance the customer journey and drive sustainable growth. Zurich Malaysia operates four business lines namely life insurance, general insurance, family takaful and general takaful. Being the only multinational corporation that holds all four insurance and takaful licenses, Zurich Malaysia offers a broad range of insurance and takaful solutions under one brand to ensure that customers have comprehensive and bespoke coverage based on their personal needs.
In this country leadership role, Junior will oversee Zurich’s businesses in Malaysia, ensuring strategies and foundations are in place to enhance the customer journey and drive sustainable growth. Zurich Malaysia operates four business lines namely life insurance, general insurance, family takaful and general takaful. Being the only multinational corporation that holds all four insurance and takaful licenses, Zurich Malaysia offers a broad range of insurance and takaful solutions under one brand to ensure that customers have comprehensive and bespoke coverage based on their personal needs.
Junior is a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering graduate from Columbia University, New York. His career began in Accenture’s New York office before joining the insurance industry.
Leong See Meng is the Senior Vice President, Strategy & Business, overseeing the Strategy & Business Department.
He has over 29 years of experience in banking and finance. His career in banking started in 1993 with Hongkong & Shanghai Banking Corporation and has since worked for leading financial institutions such as Citibank, Deutsche Bank, National Bank of Abu Dhabi amongst others. He leads the Sustainability Committee at Cagamas and is on a constant lookout to promote sustainability practices, particularly in areas of affordable housing and capital market instruments.
See Meng is an accountant by training and banker by profession. He read Accounting at RMIT University, Melbourne and graduated with distinction in 1992 after which he completed the CPA programme with CPA Australia.
Mohd Muazzam Mohamed is the Group Chief Executive Officer of Bank Islam Malaysia Berhad, the only full-fledged Islamic bank publicly listed on the Main Market of Bursa Malaysia.
Formerly a Partner with KPMG Malaysia and an Executive Director with KPMG Management Consulting, Mohd Muazzam joined Bank Islam on 11 May 2015 as Chief Financial Officer before being appointed to his current position on 5 December 2018. With over 22 years of experience in the field of finance, audit and consulting, Mohd Muazzam plays an instrumental role in Malaysia’s Islamic Finance industry, serving as the President of Association of Islamic Banking and Financial Institutions Malaysia (AIBIM) and the Chairman of Value-Based Intermediation (VBI) Community of Practitioners.
He is a Chartered Accountant with the Malaysian Institute of Accountants (MIA); a Council Member of The Malaysian Institute of Certified Public Accountants (MICPA); a Chartered Islamic Finance Professional of Chartered Institute of Islamic Finance Professionals (CIIF); and a Chartered Public Finance Accountant of Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIFPA). He holds a Bachelor of Accounting from the International Islamic University of Malaysia.
Nadia Ismadi is the CEO and co-founder of a Shariah financial wellbeing platform, Pod which enables gig workers in Southeast Asia to save, access to microfinancing, build credit trails and consume financial products.
Prior to this, Nadia served in the asset management industry with Nomura Asset Management focusing on business development and marketing for institutional clients, including pension funds, central banks, and corporates. Her area of coverage included, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Middle East. She was also part of the internal robo-advisory project during her stint at Nomura, which got her interest within the fintech space to peak.
Nadia is also serving as a Guest Lecturer for Entrepreneurship at Monash University since 2019.
A seasoned executive digital leader with strong commercial acumen and a customer-centric approach. Nadir is for innovation and spearheading digital banking and payments strategy & product, digital operating models, Digital Commerce, business transformation and design thinking.
Nadir has a successful track record in a range of executive leadership positions with responsibility for large transformation programs. Currently working with Neoleap KSA to craft digital strategies for B2B and B2C domains which includes positioning of digital Islamic offerings as part of value chain. As an executive, he served different multinational companies across GCC, Europe, Africa, and Asia.
Rafe Haneef is the Chief Executive Officer of Group Transaction Banking and the Chief Executive Officer of CIMB Foundation. He oversees the transaction banking business, including trade finance, cash management, securities services and financial institutions. At CIMB Foundation, he spearheads CSR activities across four strategic pillars: education, economic empowerment, environment, health and community well-being.
Mr Haneef has more than two decades of experience across a range of businesses and functional roles, having worked for three global banks, an international asset management company and a legal firm, in financial centres including London, Dubai and Kuala Lumpur.
He was previously the Chief Executive Officer of CIMB Islamic Bank, where he was instrumental in the organisation’s inclusion in the Value-based Intermediation Community of Practitioners, and worked to promote sustainability among Islamic finance institutions in Malaysia. He was also instrumental in driving the sustainability agenda at CIMB and was the first Group Chief Sustainability Officer. He was also instrumental in CIMB Group’s becoming a member of the RFI (Responsible Finance and Investment) Foundation and a founding member of the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative.
Before joining CIMB, Mr Haneef held several roles including Chief Executive Officer for Malaysia at HSBC Amanah, Regional Head for Islamic banking (Asia-Pacific) at Citigroup, and Global Head of the Islamic finance business at ABN AMRO in Dubai. He holds law degrees from the International Islamic University Malaysia and Harvard Law School, and has qualified for the bar in Malaysia and New York State.
Shahid is the CEO of Rizq Financial Technologies, a UK based regulated financial services offering retail and business customers e-wallets and payment services. Shahid is a certified accountant and a veteran banker who worked for HSBC Group in the UK. Subsequently, he moved to Saudi Arabia working for the Saudi British Bank and Bank AlJazira., where he was Group CFO. Shahid is a supporter of financial inclusion and the empowerment of minority communities within Financial Services.
Sharifatul Hanizah is the Executive Director of Islamic Capital Market Development (ICMD) of the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC).
She leads a team that facilitates the developmental and operational initiatives for Malaysia’s Islamic capital market (ICM). This encompasses initiatives through the deepening and broadening of ICM products and services to further strengthen Malaysia’s position as a global hub for ICM as well reviews of industry proposals and Shariah status for listed/pre-initial public offering securities.
She leads a team that facilitates the developmental and operational initiatives for Malaysia’s Islamic capital market (ICM). This encompasses initiatives through the deepening and broadening of ICM products and services to further strengthen Malaysia’s position as a global hub for ICM as well reviews of industry proposals and Shariah status for listed/pre-initial public offering securities.
Prior to joining the SC in August 2019, Sharifatul Hanizah was the Chief Executive Officer of SIDC, the learning and development arm of the SC. She is a Fellow of the Financial Services Institute of Australasia (F Fin), a Certified Financial Planner (CFP), an Islamic Financial Planner (IFP) and a Fellow of the Institute of Corporate Directors Malaysia (ICDM).
Suhaimi Ali has 24 years of experience as a central banker. He currently oversees the Financial Development and Innovation, Islamic Finance, as well as Financial Inclusion departments.Throughout his career with BNM, he has served in various areas which include financial sector development, regulation and supervision, strategic planning, consumer protection, market conduct, international negotiations digital and cyber strategies in IT services, as well as in the Governor's Office.
In his previous role as the Director of the Financial Development and Innovation, he was responsible for the development of the financial sector and payments systems, as well as to drive digital innovation within the sector. He also recently led the development of the Financial Sector Blueprint 2022 – 2026. Suhaimi Ali graduate from the University of Notre Dame, United States of America with a Bachelor of Business Administration (Accounting).
Tan Sri Azman is currently the Chairman of Lembaga Tabung Haji, INCEIF University and Universiti Teknologi Malaysia. From 2004 to 2018, he was the Managing Director of Khazanah Nasional Berhad. His current affiliations include being a member of the Global Future Council for Investing of the World Economic Forum (Davos), the Steering Committee of the Global Ethical Finance Initiative, Edinburgh and the National Recovery Council for Covid-19 in Malaysia. He was also the Distinguished Visiting Fellow at the Centre of Development Studies, University of Cambridge (2019-2021).
He started his career at Tenaga Nasional Berhad and went on to be Head of Research at UBS and Salamon Smith Barney Malaysia and was the co-founder of BinaFikir, a boutique financial advisory firm. Azman graduated with an M.Phil in Development Studies from Cambridge University, a Diploma in Islaimc Studies from International Islamic University Malaysia and is a FCCA and a CFA charterholder.
Thomas G. Tsao co-founded Gobi Partners in 2002. Gobi’s regional platform supports entrepreneurs from the early to growth stages and has expanded to 15 locations across Asia.
In China, Tom and his partners were first-round investors into Airwallex, Dianwoda, Teambition, Tuniu, UR, and WaveOptics. He was named to the Forbes List of China’s Top VCs from 2013 - 2017. For two years, he served as CEO for DMG and created the world’s first subway soap opera starring Huang Xiaoming. Tom also leads the team that manages the Alibaba Hong Kong Entrepreneurs Fund, which has invested in companies like AutoX, DayDayCook, GoGoX, Prenetics, and WeLab.
In 2015, Tom relocated to Kuala Lumpur where he set up several funds with MAVCAP, Malaysia’s largest VC firm. Gobi has invested in over 300 companies in Southeast Asia, including Aerodyne, Carsome, EasyParcel, iStoreiSend, Kumu, and Synagie. Tom is now building Gobi’s TaqwaTech investment practice focused on innovative startups serving Muslim communities such as Airlift, Sastaticket, and UmrahMe.
Tom graduated from Harvard University with a BA in Economics and was the inspiration for Seinfeld’s ‘Movie Phone’ episode. In 2006, he founded SEO China, a non-profit organization, which has provided hundreds of internships for underserved college students. He also serves as Chair of the Presidential Scholars Foundation, which cultivates, connects, and celebrates U.S. Presidential Scholars (161 of the nation’s top high school seniors who are selected annually and honored by the White House).
Vincent Fong is a keen observer and a community builder in the fintech space. He currently serves as the Chief Editor of Fintech News Malaysia. Fintech News Malaysia is part of the Fintech News Network, a leading online publication focused on sharing the latest fintech insights and stories from Asia and Europe He is also a contributing editor for Fintech News Singapore, Fintech News Philippines, Fintech News Hong Kong and Fintech News Middle East, Fintech News Switzerland.
His role as an editor across multiple key markets gives him valuable insights into key trends and movements within the global fintech arena.
Syed Haizam is Managing Partner of The Hive Southeast Asia, a Co-Creation and Seed Fund under the Ministry of Finance’s Dana Penjana Nasional Programme, and of Tuas Capital Partners,a private equity and venture capital investment group. He is a Director of Segi Value Holdings, the operator of a wholesale hypermarket chain, “Segi Fresh,” and Srivijaya, the owner of the Cold Stone Creamery franchise for Malaysia.
He is also on the Board of Directors of Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) and Chairman of Putra Business School. Syed Haizam previously spent 3 years working for F& C Investments in London as a Governance and Sustainable Investment Analyst. He is currently on the Board of Trustees for Yayasan Raja Muda Selangor and previously of the Selangor Youth Community (SAY). Syed Haizam Jamalullail holds a Bachelor and Master of Arts (Honours) in Human Sciences from Somerville College, the University of Oxford.
Ekmal Zazi is Regional Head - Wholesale Banking at CIMB Islamic and is responsible for developing and growing Islamic wholesale banking business of CIMB Group. Prior to joining CIMB Islamic in April 2020, he was with CIMB Bank, carrying out capital and balance sheet management roles of the group. He was a key person in the liquidity and interest rate management of the group, ensuring sustainable assets growth through lean and optimised balance sheet. He started his career as a management trainee with CIMB Investment Bank back in July 2007.
He graduated with an MSc in Risk Management and Financial Engineering from Imperial College London in 2012. He also holds BSc in Actuarial Science from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a Chartered Professional in Islamic Finance (CPIF) charter.
Ibrahim Sani is a name you can trust when it comes to news on tech, business, and finance. Joining AWANI in 2016, Ibrahim has since engraved his name in the TV & Digital broadcast industry with a myriad of business programmes namely Markets Today, The Marketplace, Smart Money, and now Notepad - all produced and hosted by him. He is the Senior Current Affairs Editor and Executive Producer for the organisation.
Prior to being an anchor, Ibrahim was the primary presenter for BFM 89.9. There, Ibrahim hosted the station’s flagship show, ‘The Breakfast Grille’ grilling policy makers, including CEOs and government officials. He also hosted ‘The Morning Run’.
Ibrahim was a former investment banker with CIMB Investment. He was part of the team that sawkey CIMB mergers & acquisitions of CIMB Niaga/Indonesia, CIMB Bahrain, and the discontinued CIMB-RHB-MBSB tripartite mega merger. In big data analytics, he was the pioneering team that oversaw the bank’s migration from digital data, to analytics and behavioural intelligence.
He currently produces and hosts Notepad, a show that focuses on the intersection between tech and business, with a splash of finance. Notepad speaks to captains of industry, up-and-coming startups, and organisations that bring meaningful impact to the community.
Dr Engku Rabiah Adawiah is a Professor at IIUM Institute of Islamic Banking and Finance (IIiBF), International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM). Apart from academia, she is also active in Shariah advisory where she has served as a Shariah advisor to many institutions in the past. Currently, she is a member of the Syariah Advisory Council of Bank Negara Malaysia, Securities Commission Malaysia, Labuan Financial Services Authority (Labuan FSA) and Employees Provident Fund (EPF) to name a few. She has also been listed numerous times in the list of influential women in Islamic finance, including: Top 10 Women in Islamic Finance (2014 and 2017); 3rd Most Influential Women in Islamic Finance 2018 and 2019; and 2nd Most Influential Women in Islamic Finance 2020 and 2021.
Aamir A. Rehman is an investor and an educator. He is Chair of Innate Capital Partners and a Senior Fellow at Columbia Business School. He resides in Princeton Junction, New Jersey. Innate’s portfolio includes five ESG-aligned funds and ten impact-oriented companies. Innate is actively engaged in its portfolio companies, supporting their value-creation efforts. At Columbia Business School, Dr. Rehman teaches Foundations in Private Equity to MBA students and is an affiliate of the Richman Center for Business, Law, and Public Policy.
Dr. Rehman serves on the boards of directors of Fajr Capital Advisors, Dinar Standard, and Shukr Investments. He also serves on the board of directors of INCEIF University (Malaysia), the Mercer County Community College Foundation, and Rutgers Preparatory School. Dr. Rehman was a co-founder and managing director at Fajr Capital, a private equity group that has successfully invested over $700 million in investments. He earlier served as head of strategy for HSBC Amanah, the global Islamic finance business of the HSBC Group, and as a consultant with the Boston Consulting Group.
In addition to his work in investments, Dr. Rehman has served as a senior advisor on Islamic finance to the United Nations Development Programme and is a consultant to the World Bank Group. His doctoral dissertation at Columbia University examined how private equity professionals learn from experience. Dr. Rehman is author of the books Gulf Capital and Islamic Finance: The Rise of the New Global Players (McGraw-Hill, 2009) and Dubai & Co.: Global Strategies for Doing Business in the Gulf States (McGraw-Hill, 2007).
Dr. Rehman holds a bachelor’s degree from Harvard College, a master’s degree from the Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, and an MBA from the Harvard Business School. He further holds a doctoral degree in education (Ed.D.) from Columbia University.
As the Group Chief Executive Officer, Islamic Banking, Maybank and Chief Executive Officer, Maybank Islamic Berhad, Dato’ Rafique plays a leading role in managing and overseeing the overall Islamic banking franchise of Maybank Group and ensures that it operates on a parallel platform, leveraging on the Group's resources. At present, his responsibilities include formulating business strategy for the Group’s Islamic Banking business including Maybank Islamic’s products development and delivery, marketing support, risk and Shariah-compliance management as well as spearheading the expansion of Group Islamic Banking within ASEAN and globally.
Dato’ Rafique was previously the Group Chief Financial Officer of Malayan Banking Berhad from June 2012 till June 2016.
Dato' Rafique has more than 30 years of experience in the corporate sector, as Chief Financial Officer of Tenaga Nasional Berhad and Malakoff Berhad, Chief Operating Officer and subsequently as Chief Executive Officer of Radicare (M) Sdn Bhd. He also held corporate finance and advisory roles with Amanah Capital Group and Bumiputra Merchant Bankers Berhad in the early part of his career.
Dato’ Rafique is a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), United Kingdom; Chartered Accountant with the Malaysian Institute of Accountants (MIA); and Alumni of the Advanced Management Programme at Harvard Business School.
Currently Dato' Rafique serves as Executive Director of ETIQA General Takaful Berhad, Non-Independent Non-Executive Director of Maybank Islamic Asset Management Sdn Bhd, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Islamic Banking and Finance Institute Malaysia (IBFIM) and Council Member of the Association of Islamic Bank Institutions Malaysia (AIBIM).
Adnan Zaylani was appointed as Assistant Governor since 1 August 2016. Adnan played key roles in managing the international reserves, the National Trust Fund and several other public sector funds. He also oversaw financial market operations and was involved in advising the government on its debt management strategy, participating in its international Sukuk roadshows in 2015 and 2016.
He became the Assistant Governor for financial markets, investment, foreign exchange administration and currency management in 2016 and a member of the Monetary Policy Committee before furthering his studies in 2017. Upon completion of this, he returned to take over as the Assistant Governor of the Development Sector until 31 March 2022 and currently oversees the Investment Sector.
Datin Seri Sunita Rajakumar, Chairman of Bursa-listed Dutch Lady Milk Industries, is a professional independent director and a strong advocate of the importance of governance in general and risk management in particular. She is independent non-executive director of Petronas Chemicals, HSBC Malaysia, MCIS Insurance (a member of the Sanlam group) and Zurich General Insurance, as well as trustee of 6 charitable foundations. As a volunteer, she is Chairman and Founder of Climate Governance Malaysia [the country chapter of the World Economic Forum’s Climate Governance Initiative], Fellow of the Institute of Corporate Directors Malaysia, member of the Global Advisory Board of Nottingham University’s School of Business, the Advisory Panel of the UN Global Compact Malaysia’s Sustainability Center of Excellence and the External Advisory Committee for Sunway University’s Master in Sustainable Development Management and the workstream lead for government policy for the CEO Action Network, an industry led initiative to increase sustainability and climate resilience.
Assistant Professor Dr Ziyaad Mahomed is the former Associate Dean of E-learning, and Director of Executive Education at INCEIF and is currently Lead Researcher (Shariah) for the Centre of Excellence in Social Finance at INCEIF. He also leads Micra, INCEIF’s e-learning platform. He serves as Chairman of several Shariah boards internationally including HSBC Amanah (Malaysia), Taj Bank (Nigeria) and Iman (Uzbekistan), a bespoke Islamic finance and lifestyle app. He is a respected Shariah advisor in Islamic finance, Islamic social finance and Islamic fintech solutions in Central Asia, the UK and South Africa. He holds a PhD and CIFP from INCEIF, an MBA (South Africa), a BA (Hons) in Business (Finance) (UK) and qualifications in the Islamic Sciences from South Africa and Jordan.
Alaa Alaabed has earned her PhD in Islamic finance from INCEIF, Malaysia. She qualified as a Chartered Islamic Finance Professional (CIFP) in 2011. Alaa was awarded Bachelor of Commerce; major in Finance from Macquarie University, Australia in 2007. She worked with Wethaq group of companies; first advising Wethaq Capital Markets on core FinTech proposition and integrating qualitative research and market insights into strategies and high-level initiatives before managing Wethaq Capital Platform Company’s corporate and regulatory affairs in Saudi Arabia. Alaa is part of the RFI Foundation’s Emissary Steering Group; advocating ESG, sustainability and responsible finance and was also a Working Group Member at AAOIFI. Her work experience includes Treasury products’ development in HSBC Amanah, Malaysia, buy-side research analysis in SICO investment bank, Bahrain, education in the College of Banking and Financial Studies, Oman, rating in the Islamic International Rating Agency (IIRA), Bahrain, and FinTech focused research and advisory in Finocracy.
Mukhtar is a senior international banker who retired from HSBC as a Group General Manager in 2021 following a 39 year career at the firm. He has undertaken a series of senior executive management roles in Asia, Middle East and Europe . He was previously CEO HSBC Malaysia and instrumental in the creation of HSBC Amanah in Malaysia. He has had extensive experience across the spectrum of international financial services. Currently he serves as CEO of Montague Advisory Partners and is on the Board of HSBC Malaysia and the Asian School of Business.
Mr. Farhan Ahmad is the Group Chief Executive Officer of Payments Network Malaysia Sdn Bhd (‘PayNet’).
Mr. Ahmad has over 25 years of combined experience as an entrepreneur and senior executive in the financial sector in US and Europe. As an entrepreneur, he founded two successful FinTechs: Aceva Technologies, the first Buy Now Pay Later solution in the industry, acquired by FIS, and Bento for Business, the first financial operating platform for SMEs, recently acquired by US Bank, the 5th largest retail bank in the US.
As a banking executive, Mr. Ahmad helmed numerous “first of its kind” payment solutions and innovations during his tenure spanning Barclays, Discover Financial Services, JP Morgan Chase, and FirstUSA. He holds several payments industry patents and is an active investor in the FinTech space.
An International Baccalaureate scholar, he has a bachelor’s degree in Economics from the University of Pennsylvania. Mr. Ahmad is a frequent industry speaker and has been a member of the Forbes Finance Council since June 2019.
Samina Akram has a wealth of experience within the investment, private and commercial banking space. Previous organisations she has worked for include; Merrill Lynch International Bank (where she was heading up their Islamic finance wealth management business). Deutsche Bank, Barclays Bank, Toronto-Dominion Bank and National Bank of Dubai (Emirates NBD). Samina specialises in the field of Islamic and ethical finance, she has long-established working relations with governments, investment banks, corporate investors, trade organisations and senior industry executives.Her exceptional contributions to the Islamic finance industry have won her immense respect, public recognition and multiple business awards.
She is a recipient of the United Nation's Women's Federation for World Peace award. Samina won numerous internal Merrill Lynch leadership awards during her time with the bank. Other accolades being shortlisted in the European Muslim Women of Influence list. She has been recognised by Islamic finance review ISFIRE as being among the 20 most distinguished women in Islamic finance globally; with a number five ranking’. Samina has also been awarded the Freedom of the City of London. Samina runs her own consultancy firm (Samak Ethical Finance) and is also founder of the Women in Islamic & Ethical finance forum (WIEFF) which has over 10,000 professional members from more than 30 counties. Samina has read Philosophy and holds a Masters degree in Psychology of Religion from Heythrop College, University of London.
A thought leader in data and technology, with the ability to design and implement a future vision and strategy around people, process and technology. Ikram has a passion for always making a difference, and understanding the "why", whilst seeing the bigger picture and including people on the journey.
In 2022, Ikram joined Al Rajhi Bank Malaysia as the Head of Digital Bank to lead the digital bank effort. No stranger to the FinTech world, Ikram has over 16 years of international experience mentoring and building tech firms in the FinTech and InsureTech industries. Specializing in FinTech consultancy, he successfully implemented innovative solutions across banking, wealth and asset management, insurance, and financial services. Ikram holds a Degree in Financial Mathematics from Brunel University, UK with Agile and Prince 2 certifications.
Ajith Jayaram started his career in AEON Credit Service (M) Berhad in 2005. Over the span of 17 years with the Company, he has held various positions in Senior Leadership in which includes as the Chief Strategy Officer (CSO), Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) and Chief Transformation Officer (CTO) and he has been one of the key drivers for the transformation at AEON Credit Service (M) Berhad. Prior to AEON Credit he has gained experience in the banking and human resource fields.
Ajith is an experienced leader with over 20 years of experience in sales, corporate strategy, business development, marketing, recoveries and digitalisation in the financial industry. In his current capacity as the Chief Transformation Officer, he is responsible in the formulation, strategy and development of the AEON Digital Bank.
Mr. Amin Shafie is a Partner in Intres Capital Partners. He is also a founding partner of QuestMark Capital Management a venture capital management firm based in Kuala Lumpur with operations in Hong Kong. Prior to that, he was with MSC Venture Corporation, and involved in Malaysia’s first venture fund focused on the ICT industry. Throughout his tenure, he is active on the boards of portfolio companies involved in tv media, animation, new media, mobile applications, big data, medical devices and green technology industry. His experience includes the setup and adoption of new business models and turnaround and workout strategies for such companies.
Currently, he represents ADIF on the boards of Aerodyne, Serunai, and Katsana. Mr. Amin Shafie graduated from Western Michigan University in USA with a BBA in Computer Information Systems. He is the past Chairman of the Malaysian Venture Capital and Private Equity Association (MVCA).
Dr Ramadhan is currently the Head of Strategy at Maybank Group Islamic Banking. He oversees the Bank’s strategic business plan towards achieving its business goals whilst making a positive impact on its customer, shareholders, and community. Concurrently, Dr Ramadhan also oversees Maybank Islamic’s Strategic communication, Research, and Islamic Finance center of excellence initiatives. Prior to becoming the Head of Strategy, he led key roles across various business segments within Maybank Group, including Islamic capital market (Sukuk and Shariah- compliant IPOs), Shariah and Product management, over his 15 years of experience. He received his PhD in Law of Islamic Finance from SOAS University of London.
Prof. Dr. Rusni Hassan is the Dean of IIUM Institute of Islamic Banking and Finance, IIUM. She specializes in legal, governance and Shariah aspects of Islamic Finance. She is an active researcher and expert trainer in Islamic Finance. She speaks extensively as key speaker in seminars, conferences and trainings locally and internationally. She is the Shariah Committee for several Islamic Financial Institutions, Waqf, Islamic Cooperative Societies and Association of Islamic Banking and Financial Institutions Malaysia (AIBIM). She is the Board member for a Takaful company in Malaysia and Advisory Council for the Association of Shariah Advisor in Islamic Finance (ASAS) and Vice President of International Council of Islamic Finance Educators (ICIFE). Internationally, she is the Shariah Committee for two Islamic Financial Institutions in Maldives.
She is a prolific author for 10 books and more than 200 articles in local and international journals and listed as Top 5 contributor in Scopus publication in Islamic Finance.
In recognition of her contribution in Islamic Finance, she received several awards such as the Top 10 Most Influential Women in Islamic Finance for four consecutive years since 2018 – 2022. Her contribution in Maldives was awarded with the National-Recognition for Outstanding Contribution of Females to Develop and Sustain Islamic Finance Industry in Maldives in 2018.
As Sales Director, Lavania Vijyakumar drives Thought Machine’s commercial strategy in Malaysia. Throughout her career in the strategy consulting and Fintech space she has worked on numerous digital banking transformation projects in Malaysia. Prior to Thought Machine, some key projects she led in her previous roles include implementation and design of digital onboarding (eKYC) solutions, and digital SME lending solutions for Malaysian banks.
Studied the Islamic Sharia under the supervision of a number of Sharia Scholars. Conducts courses in Islamic Jurisprudence (Fiqh), Islamic Theology (Aqidah), and Quranic Exegesis (Tafsir) in English and Arabic, in various centers in Bahrain and worldwide.
Dato Mohd Redza Shah bin Abdul Wahid is a qualified Chartered Accountant and Chartered Banker and holds a MSc Economics from University Of Wales and a BSc Economics from the London Scool of Economics.
He is currently the Chairman of the newly formed Association of Seniors In Islamic Finance, which brings together the Senior Islamic Finance leaders in Malaysia. He is Chairman of EA Technique (M) Berhad and The Al Aqar and Al Salam REITS Berhad. He is also Director in Wakaf An Nur Berhad and KPJ Healtcare Berhad.
Dato Mohd Redza was a former Chairman of Yayasan Pembangunan Ekonomi Islam Malaysia and had served as Chief Executive Officer of an Islamic Bank for 11 years. His work experience includes DRB HICOM Berhad, Tradewinds Corporation Berhad, Khazanah Nasional Berhad and Silterra Malaysia Berhad
Azaria Tagaya is a bilingual TV Host and News Presenter with more than 12 years' experience as a host, anchor, events emcee and voiceover artist. Aside from Money Matters currently airing Saturdays on TV3, among some other notable programs with Azaria Tagaya at the helm include Awani Pagi (Astro Awani), Hello on Two (RTM2), Selamat Pagi Malaysia (RTM1), Nasi Lemak Kopi O (TV9), and Kami Sayang Teacher (TV3). Azaria Tagaya also hosted Ringgit Sense (later changed to Ringgit Sense Plus) also on TV3, a personal finance show which highlights issues related to managing expenses using smart solutions suitable for today's fast-paced lifestyle and ever changing financial climate. Azaria Tagaya also currently presents the news on Buletin Utama and Nightline on TV3.
Abdul Haseeb is a digital finance specialist and has over 20 years' experience working at the intersection of finance, technology and strategy.
He is a Co-Founder and Principal of Elipses and CFO of The Global Blockchain Business Council, a not-for-profit promoting fair and transparent market for blockchain, digital and crypto assets, and an Emissary at the Responsible Finance and Investment (RFI) Foundation, the global industry body for the responsible finance sector.
He was previously the CFO of Innovate Finance, the UK not-for-profit FinTech members association, and previously Chairman of Yielders, a crowdfunding property investment platform and the first regulated Islamic FinTech in the UK. He has also worked in tier-1 banks in technology transformation and strategy with a private wealth and asset management focus.
He is a qualified management accountant and has an MBA (with distinction) from Imperial College Business School.
Abdul Haseeb is an Islamic & ethical finance advocate and promotes the transformational impact of technology on the industry. He was selected as one of the top 100 BAME Tech Leaders in the UK for 2018.
Vinda Montes, a Spanish National, is Senior Financial Specialist at the World Bank. She joined the World Bank in 2007 as a credit reporting systems specialist and since then has supported policy reforms in more than 80 projects worldwide involving the development or enhancement of credit reporting systems, payment systems, financial consumer protection, digital identification, e-kyc, data protection, open finance, privacy and cybersecurity.
Vinda also served as Lead Secretariat to the International Committee on Credit Reporting (ICCR) since its inception in 2009 till January 2018 and from 2018-2021 co-chaired the Financial Inclusion Global Initiative (FIGI) working group on cybersecurity for financial infrastructure and the FIGI working group on Digital Identity. In 2016, she co-authored the book “Responsible Finance and Credit Reporting Systems” which focuses on the links between insolvency and credit information. She contributes regularly to G20, FSB, FATF and other international policy makers on analytical work related to payment systems, data protection, digital identity Fintech and credit reporting.
Prior to joining the World Bank, she was legal director at Experian Spain, where she was responsible for the compliance unit of the credit bureau and value-added services business lines.
Ms. Montes earned her five-year degree in Law at the Universidad Complutense and studied Political Science at Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia in Madrid. Additionally, she holds a Masters degree on Data Protection and New Technologies Law and served as exchange student at Universiteit Instelling Antwerpen, Belgium focusing on EU comparative law.
Noor Farilla is Bank Islam Group’s Chief Strategy Officer and leads the planning, implementation, and benefits realisation of the transformation program for the bank.
Over her career spanning 2 decades, she has driven Business Transformation, Programme Management, and Complex Project Implementation.
She began her career in Accenture where she consulted with agencies and organisations involved in driving the Multimedia Super Corridor implementation and went on to deliver large-scale merger integration and transformation programmes in the financial services space.
She is energised by driving the Digital Agenda and entrenching Value-Based Intermediation (VBI) which are the key components of the program. One of the key initiatives under her leadership is the Centre of Digital Experience which is responsible for Bank Islam's New Digital Banking Proposition, Be U by Bank Islam.
She graduated from the University of Warwick with a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics. When not doing transformation work, she climbs mountains and has scaled 2 of the 7 Summits.
Dato Paduka Iqbal Khan is the Chief Executive Officer of Fajr Capital, a sovereign-backed Islamic investment firm. He is also a member of the Board of Directors of Cravia Group, Jadwa Investment and MENA Infrastructure. Prior to Fajr Capital, he was the founding CEO of HSBC Amanah, where he built the business and team over eight years into one of the fastest growing and most successful emerging businesses in the HSBC Group.
He is a long-time advocate of the Islamic financial services industry, serving as an advisor to government initiatives in Brunei, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom. He holds a Master’s degree in Political Science and International Relations and a B.Sc. (Hons) in Physics and Chemistry, both from Aligarh Muslim University. He is the recipient of several industry and global accolades, including the State Award of ‘The Most Honourable Order of the Crown of Brunei’ from HM the Sultan of Brunei Darussalam; the Royal Award for Islamic Finance (2012), a biannual prize presented by HM the King of Malaysia; and a Lifetime Achievement Award presented by HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.
Ts. Othman Abdullah is the Chief Executive Officer, Islamic Finance and Innovative Services at Silverlake Group, a global financial technology and digital economy solutions provider. Othman also doubles up as the CEO of Silverlake Symmetry and Technology Research as well as a consultant for Silverlake Straight Through Banking (STB) System and Silverlake Integrated Banking System (SIBS).
In addition to his executive role in Silverlake, Othman sits on the board of Bank Pembangunan Malaysia Berhad as an Independent Non-Executive Director. Othman chairs Board IT Committee and a member of Board Audit and Board Risk Committees.
Othman is a subject matter expert in digital economy and financial technology with over 25 years of IT Solution implementation and transformation experiences and has engaged with countless number of financial institutions in Asia, Middle East and Africa. He is a recognized professional technologist by Malaysia Board of Professional Technologist (MBOT) and is one of the founding members of i-Connect Fintech in Islamic Finance, an industry-led collaborative network involving quadruple helix (industry, research community, government and civil society) which is an initiative by Akademi Sains Malaysia to create and nurture a conducive innovation ecosystem in Malaysia.
Othman writes regularly and has contributed his articles and thoughts to various publications. Othman has also been invited to speak on fintech, digital banking and digital economy at conferences and seminars as well as television programs. Othman was honored with the “Upcoming Personality Award” at the Global Islamic Finance Award (GIFA) 2017, appointed as a Malaysia Finance Accreditation Agency (FAA) Accreditation Panel Member and recognized as one of the 500 who make Islamic Economy globally by ISLAMICA 500 2019.