Hassan Al Bakri

Executive Director

Mr. Hassan Al Bakri is Executive Director in Risk Management Department at National Investments Company (NIC), with over 20 years of experience in Investment Companies and Banks in the field of Risk Management Corporate Governance and Compliance in Kuwait.

Mr. Hassan has worked to build solid Enterprise Risk Management Programs in the companies he worked with focusing on spreading the risk management culture. He manages to ensure that risk management practices are embedded in all activities within companies’ activities. Supported by his direct access to Board of Directors, he ensures that Board Members are updated with all risks that faces companies and the mitigations actions in place.

Prior to joining NIC, Mr. Hassan was Risk Manager in Tharwa Investment Co., where he was in charge of oversight of risk management of all activities within the company. He started his career in Financial and Business analysis in Noor Financial Investment Co. and Arkan Holding Co. giving him background in financial filed and business developments and challenges.

Mr. Hassan holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Damascus University along with High-Diploma in Islamic Finance from Kuwait University. He also holds professional credentials of Certified Management Accountants “CMA” and Project Management Professional “PMP”.

Pradeep joined Markaz in July 2022 and is responsible for overseeing the control functions to identify and mitigate risks inherent to the business, drive IT excellence and related technology initiatives towards enhancing organizational effectiveness. Pradeep chairs the governance, risk and compliance committee. Pradeep has over 25 years of experience in various leading organizations.

Pradeep was earlier the Director and head of Internal Audit at KAMCO Investment Company (Kamco Invest). Prior to that at various points he headed Risk, Compliance and AML functions. At Kamco Invest, Pradeep headed a team of analysts and professionals with overall responsibility for Internal audit, investigations, special audits and related risk controls.

Prior to working at KAMCO, Pradeep was the Head of Risk Management and Compliance at Kuwait Financial Centre (Markaz). Pradeep joined Markaz in 2005 from Standard Chartered Bank, where he was Unit Manager for Credit Risk Control of corporate clients based out of the middle east. 

Prior to Standard Chartered Bank, Pradeep was with the ICICI group where he worked on venture capital investments, project financing and structuring banking products.

Pradeep received his Bachelors degree in Mechanical Engineering from Indian Railways Institute of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering and his MBA with specialization in Finance and Systems from IIM Ahmedabad, India. Pradeep is a CFA charter holder from CFA Institute, USA, has the FRM and ERP certification from GARP, USA, has the CFE Certification from Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, USA and has the CAMS certification from ACAMS, USA. Pradeep also has the CIA and CISA designations. Pradeep is an active volunteer with the CFA Kuwait society and has served the society in various capacities.

Compliance and Financial Regulatory Specialist • Ahmed Adel has more than 15 years of experience in the field of financial institutions in general, and experience in the field of regulatory compliance, corporate governance, disclosure, and combating money laundering and terrorist financing (AML/CFT) in particular. Participated in many training programs and workshops for many financial institutions in the field of regulatory compliance, corporate governance and disclosure. • Ahmed was also a member of the committee established by Kuwait Association of Auditors & Accountants to review Kuwait Capital Markets Authority (CMA) proposed Executive bylaw before being approved by the CMA. • He also participated in consulting services in the same fields mentioned above. Mr. Ahmed is currently working as the Director of Compliance Department in Gulf Capital Investment Company (Invest GB) the investment arm of Gulf Bank. He has also worked previously in the same field in leading investment institutions in Kuwait. Professional Qualifications • Bachelor's degree from Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt. • Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment (CISI) – CMA Rules & Regulations Certificate. • International Advanced Certificate in Anti Money Laundering (ICA) Certificate. • International Advanced Certificate in Compliance (ICA) Certificate. • Certified Compliance Professional (CCP) Certificate. Training Experience • Ahmed is a distinguished trainer and keynote speaker who has delivered multiple training courses on topics covered Corporate Governance, Compliance and AML/CFT. The clients who benefited from such training included the banking and financial sector. The list of clients includes, but not limited to, Boursa Kuwait Company, Warba Bank, EFG Hermes Company, CBK Brokerage Company, Al Sharq Financial Brokerage Company and KFIC Brokerage Company

Yasmen Al Rashdan is the Assistant General Manager in the Anti-Money Laundering department of the Gulf Bank of Kuwait, bringing over 14 years of specialized expertise in AML and Compliance. Since the beginning of her career in

2011, Yasmen has built extensive experience across both local and international banks, with a proven track record in developing, enhancing, and implementing AML strategies, systems and processes aligning with local and global regulatory standards.

 

Throughout Yasmen’s career, she has worked closely with significant banking transformation initiatives, including the deployment and optimization of several transaction monitoring and screening systems, the design and refinement of customer risk assessment models, and the preparation of enterprise-wide risk assessment reports to strengthen compliance frameworks.

 

Yasmen holds a bachelor’s degree in marketing from the American University of Kuwait and had earned multiple internationally recognized certifications including Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist (CAMS) credential, along with advanced certifications in compliance, sanctions and financial crime prevention.

 

Kayakazi Zide is the Customer success manager for EMEA at LSEG. She holds a bachelor’s degree in risk management and a postgraduate honors degree in Risk Management from the University of South Africa. She is a certified Anti Money Laundering Specialist, certified by ACAMS. Currently Completing the Certified Global Sanctions Specialist certification by ACAMS.

Kayakazi has 12 plus years of experience supporting clients in multiple industries, on AML, KYC, CFT, Sanctions, Transaction monitoring, Regulatory Compliance and Compliance technologies, third party Risk and Enhanced due diligence, Risk Intelligence Data, and list management, screening programs and enhancing compliance frameworks. This includes correspondence and supporting regulators in the region and on a global scale.

Vanessa Chamoun is the Senior Regional Risk & Compliance Specialist for Middle East and Africa at LSEG, and she holds a bachelor’s degree in business economics from Notre Dame University, Lebanon, and an ACAMS certificate, a global gold standard in AML certifications.

Vanessa has 11 years plus of experience with clients, and her areas of expertise include Risk Intelligence Data, Regulatory Compliance, Risk Management, Sanctions, Financial Crime Technology, Beneficial Ownership, Fraud and Digital On-boarding.

Her role includes consulting various public and private organizations on sound deployment for Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Terrorist-Financing programs to solve business challenges and fulfill anti-financial crime requirements and finding the right solutions for CCOs & AMLOs needs & requirements.

Vanessa’s experience with the different Central Banks and Regulators in the region has added to her proficiency on the business of Compliance in diverse industries and sectors, including Banking and other types of Financial Institutions such as Insurance, FinTech, Exchanges, Payments, etc. … 

Elias Zaarour is a specialist in audit, risk, and compliance, bringing over 15 years of expertise across the financial and insurance sectors in Europe, MENA, and the GCC. He has held senior management positions, advising boards and governance committees, and leading major transformation and expansion initiatives that enhanced operational efficiency and achieved significant cost savings. Renowned for making compliance functions strategic and proactive, Elias has successfully implemented RegTech solutions and robust risk management frameworks. He holds a Master’s degree in Finance, along with advanced certifications in AML and investment.

Obeid Jweihan is a compliance and corporate governance professional with over 20 years of experience in the banking and financial sector. His areas of focus include Anti-Money Laundering (AML), Counter-Terrorism Financing (CTF), compliance, risk management, and corporate governance.

He currently serves as the Head of Compliance & Corporate Governance at Boursa Kuwait. He has been involved in key initiatives, including the implementation of AML/CTF automated systems.

Obeid holds a bachelor’s degree in finance and is a Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist (CAMS).

 

Sarah Al-Rashed is a Senior Legal Researcher in the Legal Department of the Kuwait Financial Intelligence Unit (KwFIU). She has played a key role in drafting Law No. 106 of 2013 on Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism, and has actively participated in international workshops on related issues. She has represented the KwFIU in Egmont Group meetings and is strongly committed to strengthening both domestic and international cooperation, as well as advancing information exchange among financial intelligence units worldwide.

Currently Global Head of Customer Risk Proposition of the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG), including World-Check. Previously acted as Head of Strategy for Risk Intelligence, Global Strategic Partner Director and Head of Market Development for the Middle East and Africa at LSEG.

A multi award-winning Risk market specialist with 20+ years industry experience both in the UK and Middle East. A Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist (CAMS), a Certified Global Sanctions Specialist (CGSS), a qualified CertPAY professional (London Institute of Banking and Finance), a member of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE), who also holds a Diploma in Financial Crime and Compliance. Completed the Executive Program in 2018 with MIT for AI and Machine Learning, with practical application for the financial crime industry.

Held the role of Group Secretariat for the MENA Financial Crime Compliance Group (MENA FCCG), since its' inception in September 2016.

A permanent member of the Advisory Panel of the MENA Chapter of the Global Coalition to Fight Financial Crime since 2021. A member of the UAE Government Public, Private Sector, Technology Working Group.