H.E. Al-Hashel had served as Sheikh Salem's deputy since January 2009 and is expected to follow in his footsteps despite his relative lack of experience.

He was a member of Kuwait's stock exchange committee from 2008-2011, during a time when the country decided to privatise the bourse. The privatisation plan is progressing slowly.

H.E. Al-Hashel is also a member of the technical committee of the Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB).

Jaseem Ahmed assumed the position of the Secretary-General of the Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB) on 1st May 2011.

He has more than 20 years experience in financial sector issues. Prior to his appointment to the IFSB, Mr. Ahmed served as the Director, Financial Sector, Public Management and Trade, Southeast Asia Department of the Asian Development Bank (ADB). In this capacity, he was responsible for managing the ADB's lending, technical assistance, and capacity building operations in Southeast Asia for the promotion of sound banking and non-banking financial sectors, and for the strengthening of supervision and regulatory capacities. Mr. Ahmed led the ADB's response in the Southeast Asia region to the global crisis, and was also Practice Leader for Islamic finance at the ADB.

Mr. Ahmed has a BA in economics from the University of Sussex and also holds two graduate degrees in economics from Yale University. He is a national of Bangladesh.

Dr. Khaled Al Fakih is the Secretary General of Accounting and Auditing Organisation for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI), the international organisation responsible for standards on accounting, auditing, ethics, governance and Shari’a for the global Islamic finance industry. Dr. Al Fakih has extensive experience in banking and finance and unique combination of expertise in Islamic law, risk management, audit and technical finance. He holds a PhD in Islamic Studies from the University of Saint Joseph, Beirut, Lebanon, and MBA in Banking and Finance. Dr. Al Fakih is a Certified Financial Risk Manager (FRM), Certified Management Accountant (CMA), Certified Internal Auditor (CIA), Certified Financial Services Auditor (CFSA), and Certified Control Self-Assessment (CCSA). He was a member of the Islamic Banks Committee of Association of Banks in Lebanon. He was also a member of venture capital and Islamic securitization study group as well as Islamic corporate governance study group at Central Bank of Lebanon in 2007. In addition, he has lectured on the principles of Islamic jurisprudence (Fiqh Al Mu’amalat) at Islamic University of Beirut’s Al Sharia College, and delivered seminars in different countries in collaboration with International Monetary Fund, ABL and Union of Arab Banks, covering major Islamic finance topics on principles of Islamic finance, structured finance, risk management and audit. Prior to AAOIFI, he was heading Bank Audi sal’s group Islamic banking operations.

Furqan Ahmad has served in senior management role in Islamic Financial Institutions in USA and GCC over last 12 years. He has been responsible for Product Management, Segmentation, P & L, Sales, Marketing, Training and Distribution of Islamic Banking Products.

Mr. Ahmad has led the launch of new Sharia compliant product propositions, increased portfolio size while spearheading operational improvements to drive productivity and reduce costs. He has led the set up Profit Management System as senior member of Islamic Banking Project Management Committee.

At ADCB Islamic Banking, he built new Islamic product suites right from scratch and helped grow business portfolio successfully. Prior to Dubai Islamic Bank and ADCB, Mr. Ahmad served Mashreq Al Islami in UAE where he was involved in the Islamic Banking launch project, developing Asset, Liability and Sukuk Investment products.

Furqan Ahmad holds MBA in International Business Finance from the George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA and BBA in Marketing from IBA University, Karachi, Pakistan.

Mr. Grifferty founded and leads The Gulf Bond and Sukuk Association (GBSA) the independent industry association representing the Arabian Gulf fixed income market.

Prior to founding GBSA, he served as advisor for the US Treasury on sovereign debt and bond markets, where he advised over forty countries and regional organizations. He has also consulted for the International Monetary Fund and Arab Monetary Fund.

Prior to his international career, Mr. Grifferty was a senior vice president at Government Finance Associates, providing problem-solving financial advisory services to US state and local governments and public authorities. A sought after speaker at international conferences, he is also frequent contributor to the financial press.

Mr. Grifferty has degrees from New York University and Georgetown University in Public Finance and International Relations, respectively.