SWIFT Holds its Middle East Regional Conference in Jordan

Under Royal Patronage

SWIFT Holds its Middle East Regional Conference in Jordan

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Conference will be held on 30-31 March at the Dead Sea and will be attended by top international and regional bankers

Amman/Dubai, 2 March 2015 – Under Royal Patronage, hundreds of top Arab and international bankers and financiers will be attending SWIFT’s annual Middle East Regional Conference, organised in Jordan this year on Monday 30 March.

The two-day conference on the Dead Sea will bring together policy makers, industry leaders and key speakers to discuss the opportunities presented by the region’s growth and expansion and examine the challenges posed by an increasingly complex geopolitical and economic environment. The event will also explore the role of financial infrastructure in underpinning economic vitality and in facilitating regional and global trade, and get an economic viewpoint of Middle East development. In addition, the conference will discuss financial inclusion and the importance of diversity in the region, as well as developments in financial technology innovation, the continued impact of new global regulations and the rising threat of cybercrime.

Christian Sarafidis, Deputy Chief Executive, EMEA, at SWIFT says: “Despite the geopolitical headwinds and industrial unrest in the last year or so, banks in the Arab region have shown growing resilience and reach and capital markets have enjoyed rising international attraction. For example, companies raised almost US$18 billion in the Middle East’s equity markets in 2014, more than three times the previous record for a year. This bumper 12 months comes ahead of plans by Saudi Arabia to open its doors to direct foreign investment in its US$500 billion stock market. This bodes well for the region’s economic growth.”

Sido Bestani, Head of Middle East, North Africa and Turkey at SWIFT, says: “The Middle East Regional Conference will provide a unique platform for discussion and high-level networking for a crucial dialogue about the future of our industry in the region. Banks in the Middle East are expanding across the region and beyond. They are looking for ways to minimise risk and maximise opportunities. The Middle East Regional Conference is a great venue to discuss these issues.”

Efficient payment systems and securities markets are a critical element for any economy and so the theme for SWIFT’s Middle East Regional Conference this year is ‘Financial market infrastructure – driving economic growth’. Senior speakers and strategic thinkers from across the industry globally and from the region will include:

• His Excellency Dr. Ziad Fariz, Governor of Central Bank of Jordan
• Mr Nemeh Sabbagh, CEO of Arab Bank
• Alain Raes – CEO, EMEA & Apac, SWIFT
• Mr Hashim Shawa, Chairman and General Manager of Bank of Palestine
• Mr Javier Perez Tasso, Chief Marketing Officer of SWIFT
• Mr Chris Hurran, Senior Associate Fellow at the Institute for Security and Resilience
• Hanna Al Razzouki, Executive Director of the Central Bank of Kuwait
• Samir Sahu – Head, Global Transaction Banking, EmiratesNBD
• Arup Roy – Head, Global Transaction Banking, Saudi British Bank
• Hashim Shawa – Chairman and General Manager, Bank of Palestine
• Alp Eke – Senior Economist, National Bank of Abu Dhabi
• Dr Maher Sheikh Hasan – Deputy Governor, Central Bank of Jordan
• May Abulnaga, Head of the Regulation Department at the Central Bank of Egypt
• Clive Haswell – Head of Regulatory Compliance, Standard Chartered Bank
• Waheed Rathore – Group Chief Compliance & AML, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank
• Vineet Varma – Head, Global Transaction Banking, National Bank of Abu Dhabi
• Paul Edwards – Executive Chairman, Emerging Markets Payments Group.

For more information and to register please visit www.swift.com