Saudi asset management company Sedco Capital’s chairman, Sheikh Abdelelah Salem Ahmed Bin Mahfouz, has been named winner of “The Most Outstanding Individual Contribution to Islamic Finance” Award for 2012.

The award was recently presented during the Kuala Lumpur Islamic Finance Forum (KLIFF 2012) held in the Malaysian capital.

The aim of the event was mainly to honour and acknowledge the significant efforts of individuals and institutions in developing the Islamic finance industry, as well as to gather a pool of industry experts including regulatory authorities, Shariah scholars, bankers, legal practitioners, Takaful operators and academicians to share their views and experience concerning the Islamic finance industry.

Sheikh Abdelelah said: “It is an honour to receive such a prestigious award and proof of the success of Sedco Capital’s vision of sharing our experience and knowledge, in addition to delivering global best practice ideas to our investment partners, which we have developed over sixteen years of successful involvement in real estate, public equity timber, commodities and private equity investments.”

He continued by saying that with the World Bank forecasting expansion of the global Islamic finance market by at least 15 per cent annually, it only makes sense for individuals and companies to invest in further development of the sector.

Hasan Al Jabri, CEO of Sedco Capital said, “The power of partnership lies at the heart of Sedco Capital ‘s  business and its investment strategy. We firmly believe partnerships create scale, reduce costs of doing business, providing increasing negotiating power and get greater access to investment  opportunities.

“This powerful partnership model ensures transparency and establishes a full alignment of interest with our clients creating lasting relationships, mutual trust and shared success.”

Sheikh Abdelelah has extensive experience in the investment and banking sector, holding several positions in the region’s largest commercial bank, the National Commercial Bank (NCB). He started the investment arm of the bank in the late 1970’s, pitting it against the most recognized players in the regional industry. – TradeArabia News Service