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Abdeslam El-Idrissi
Deputy CEO & Secretary General of Arab British Chamber of CommerceMr Abdeslam El-Idrissi is proud to have served the best part of over 36 years with the Arab British Chamber of Commerce, serving both as Director of Trade Services, Acting General Manager and now his present position as Deputy CEO and Secretary General.
During this time, he has cultivated strong relationships with British Chambers, Government bodies, educational institutions, NGOs across both the Arab world and the UK regions, as well as the UK-Arab business communities as a whole. To this end, Mr El-Idrissi is in much demand across the regions as a keynote speaker and as one of the UK’s leading experts on UK-Arab trade relations.
He is also a key member of the Institute of Export where in the past he has held the position of Vice Chair of the Institute of Export, London Branch for a period of 7 years.
Mr Bandar Reda
Secretary General & CEO of ABCCMr Bandar Ali Reda joined the Arab British Chamber of Commerce, on 1st March 2019, as Secretary General and CEO, becoming the fourth person to lead the Chamber since its foundation almost five decades ago.
As CEO, Mr Reda contributes his expertise by drawing on his wealth of experience as a diplomat and extensive time spent in the private sector to ensure the Chamber moves to the next level.
Mr Reda has a distinguished professional career of more than a decade in banking and corporate industry at SABB HSBC Saudi Arabia, prior to senior positions in the diplomatic service of his country, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, where he served as Commercial Attaché in the UK & Europe, based in London, and in Italy and as part of the Saudi delegation to the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) in Paris.
Mr Reda holds a BA in Economics and Business Administration from Orlando, USA. He has been an Executive Member of the Saudi-Italian Business Council, the Council of Saudi Chambers; a Member of the Business Youth Committee, Jeddah Chamber of Commerce; a Member of the Saudi Economy Association; and a Member of the Saudi Arabian legal accountants. Mr Reda has demonstrated his experience and abilities in his roles in both public and private sectors.
Since taking up his post, Mr Reda has successfully steered the Chamber throughout the difficult months of the pandemic and lockdown, a period which presented unprecedented challenges for international trade and the business community. Under Mr Bandar Reda’s guidance and leadership, the Chamber not only continued all its activities uninterrupted but extended its services during this period and has reinforced its reputation as the leading strategic business services organisation in the UK dedicated to strengthening Arab-British trade and building closer business co-operation.
Naim Hakim, CFA
Executive Banker & AdvisorNaim Hakim is an accomplished banker and financial expert with over 25 years’ experience in the banking and financial services industry in Lebanon and across the MENAT region.
He has occupied leading executive positions in several banks and sits on the board of directors of various financial institutions.
Most recently, Naim Hakim was a leading executive with Saradar Bank sal, Beirut. He played a pivotal role in the establishment and development of Odeabank, a subsidiary of Bank Audi, which became the 12th largest bank in the Turkish banking sector within 5 years from its initial launch.
Mr Hakim provides advisory services to companies in the Gulf. His profound understanding of financial markets and his ability to identify effective solutions enabled business growth and improved financial performance.
A Chartered Financial Analyst, CFA, Mr Hakim was educated in Lebanon, France and the USA.
Michael Bishop
Head of Wealth Management at WH IrelandMichael brings significant experience of building and running substantial wealth management businesses, having previously been a senior member of UBS’s wealth management business for over 20 years.
He started his wealth management career as a founding employee of UBS’s UK domestic wealth management business in 2000; having grown UBS’s business in the UK, he spent two years in Switzerland integrating the teams covering origination, investment and client relationships across the UK business. He then developed an Institutional Family Office business whilst being responsible for UBS’s Ultra High Net Worth teams across Northern Europe.
Michael joined WH Ireland as Head of Wealth Management in January 2022.
Steve Herbert
Wellbeing & Benefits Director of Partners&Steve Herbert is an award-winning commentator on Human Resources (HR), Employee Benefits, Financial Wellbeing, and Pension issues. In June 2022 he joined national intermediary Partners& in the role of Wellbeing & Benefits Director.
Steve is a regular and sought-after speaker at events, with a unique and engaging delivery style that aims to demystify and explain complex issues to his audience. This same approach is reflected in both his written work and regular commentary for many HR and industry-facing publications.
He is occasionally accused of making Employee Benefits interesting.
James Redfern
Sales Director of DiligenciaJames joined Diligencia in 2020 to support their sales activities and business development.
He has extensive experience providing data and legal entity research solutions to KYC, AML and regulatory compliance professionals in financial services. Prior to joining Diligencia, James was working for Refinitiv (formerly Thomson Reuters) with a specific focus on marketing, business development and revenue growth.