The Impact of ESG in the UAE

John Gollifer

General Manager

MEIRA

John Gollifer leads the Middle East Investor Relations Association's (MEIRA) initiatives to promote best practice IR in the Middle East. MEIRA's primary audience is IR practitioners who wish to address the investment community. Increasingly, our market remit includes working with other stakeholders, from policy-makers and regulators to the regional exchanges.  John is a former banker having spent 15 years in corporate finance and equity capital markets in Asia and Europe. He spent 11 years as Head of IR at the Singapore Exchange, where he also had responsibility for strategy, marketing and communications. Prior to joining MEIRA in 2019, John led the UK IR Society. MEIRA sees IR as a strategic imperative in the international competition for attention and capital. Contact John at john.gollifer@meira.me / www.meira.me

Sofia El Boury

Head of Investor Relations

FAB / Vice-Chair, MEIRA

Sofia is the Head of Investor Relations of First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB). In her current role, she oversees all investor-related activities and is responsible for developing and implementing an effective IR program designed to ensure accurate understanding of the company’s story and strategy, and to enhance investor confidence in its value proposition. Previously, she was Head of Investor Relations at First Gulf Bank (FGB), a role she has occupied since 2013. Before moving to Investor Relations, Sofia was a sell-side equity research analyst for more than 7 years, and was heading the Banks & Financials coverage team at Dubai-based SHUAA Capital. Sofia holds postgraduate degrees in financial management and control from Paris Dauphine University, and in international management from the American University in Washington, DC. She has been an active Board Member at MEIRA since 2014.

Shargiil Bashir

Chief Sustainability Officer

First Abu Dhabi Bank

Shargiil Bashir is the Chief Sustainability Officer at First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB). In this role, Shargiil is responsible for developing, leading, and implementing the bank’s ESG strategy and initiatives. He was among the main drivers of the bank joining the UN convened Net Zero Banking Alliance as the first bank in UAE and GCC. He is a seasoned banker with over 20 years of experience, he led various aspects of Corporate Governance, Strategy, Risk Management, Risk Assurance and Sustainability across multiple countries. Prior to joining FAB in November 2020, Shargiil was the Group Head of Risk Quality Assurance at Danske Bank, based in Denmark. Shargiil holds a Bachelor of Business Administration and an Executive MBA from the Copenhagen Business School, Denmark; and has completed Executive Education from INSEAD.

Yousra Acherqui

Middle East & Africa Market & Product Specialist

Bloomberg L.P.

Yousra Acherqui, CQF is a Market & Product Specialist covering the Middle-East & Africa region. She specifically focuses on Equity Investment workflows that impact Corporates from an IR perspective, Sovereign Wealth Funds, Asset Owners and Asset Managers. Her expertise spans all of Fundamental and Quantitative Equities, Portfolio Management and ESG, and leverages a decade of experience in Equity investing working for Hedge Funds and Investment Banks.

Hadeel Habib

Company Financials Data Specialist

Bloomberg Lp

Hadeel Habib is a Company Financials Data Specialist within Bloomberg’s Global Data team in Dubai. She has over 10 years of data management experience across Economic Statistics and Company Financials data. As a Co-Lead for Bloomberg's Abilities Community, Hadeel is a strong advocate for nurturing inclusive teams and driving D&I engagement. Hadeel graduated from York University in Toronto, Canada with a degree in Bachelors of Business Administration in Finance with Honors.

LINA ABOUDIAB

Senior Company Fundamentals Analyst

BLOOMBERG/ DUBAI OFFICE

Lina Abou Diab is a senior Company Fundamentals analyst at Bloomberg. She has over 10 years of experience in the EMEA markets focusing on providing transparent company, industry and ESG data. Lina graduated from the American University in Beirut with a degree in Bachelor of Business Administration.

David Massias

Head of Market Specialists Middle East and Africa

Bloomberg L.P.

David Massias joined Bloomberg in 2007 as an Equity Specialist to provide equity related consultative solutions to clients. Since that time, David has enjoyed a diversified career at Bloomberg. He first worked as a Bloomberg Account Manager covering large financial institutions and corporations ranging from corporate treasuries and hedge funds to research houses. He then became Global Relationship Manager for Credit Agricole for almost two years. Since 2011, David has become Bloomberg’s Equity Application Specialist for EMEA clients, where he delivers a number of seminars and webinars on key industry topics such as Equity Markets, Value Investing, Risk Analysis, Fundamental Research and ESG to 200+ audiences regularly. David’s aim is to provide Bloomberg clients with knowledge on which products or solutions will provide them with the most efficient tools to their workflow needs and problems.

Jacopo Lonardi

Relationship Manager

Bloomberg L.P.

Jacopo Lonardi is the Relationship manager for the Bloomberg Enterprise solutions in Oman and the UAE. He has been handling key accounts in the regions for many years. He is currently working on strategic projects in the region involving the ESG transition for Corporates specifically in the Oil and Gas sector.