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Name: Company: |
Amer Arif
Head of Wealth Management and Investment placement. Global Banking Corporation Kingdom of Bahrain – Bahraini |
Could you provide a brief journey of how you arrived where you are today? I began my career with Arthur Andersen as an auditor and then joined the Ministry of Finance in 1990. I worked with them for five years during which period I obtained my Certified Public Accountany (CPA) from the US. The highlight of my work at the Ministry was that I was able to work closely with Ernst & Young in developing a government wide Accrual Accounting system for the government. In 1995 I joined Albaraka as an Internal Auditor and later on moved to Investments and Marketing whereby I set up the department and worked on various products for the Bank with well known firms such as Mercury Asset Management, Merill Lynch, UBS, HSBC and Bank of America. In 1999 I was promoted to be an Assistant General Manager of Specialized Funds. I worked there until early 2007, when I joined Global Banking Corporation as Head of Wealth Management & Investment Placement. What does your role involve? What is your greatest achievement to date? Which of your products/services deliver the best results? Key targets for growth include governments, private and public sector enterprises, business and financial institutions, pension funds, wealthy family groups and high net-worth individuals. What are the strengths of your business? What are the factors contributing to the success of your company? What are the obstacles faced in running your business today? Where do you see the Islamic finance industry, maybe in the next five years? Name one thing you would like to see change in the world of Islamic finance?
GBCORP commenced operations with a paid-up capital of US$250 million, provided by the investors. The company is established in Bahrain primarily due to the country`s developed and progressive regulatory environment. With the continued demand for Islamic investment banking services, GBCORP covers Private Equity and Venture Capital, Real Estate and Infrastructure Development, Asset Management, Advisory Services in Corporate Finance and Capital Markets, as well as Portfolio Management Services. |