TOP 300 MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN IN ISLAMIC BUSINESS AND FINANCE
Women in the contemporary Muslim world are carrying the legacy of their counterparts in the early history of Islam wherein women played comprehensive roles in academia, philanthropy and businesses. Throughout Islamic history, we have seen women playing important and influential roles in major areas such as policy-making, politics, academia and business. Islamic banking and finance (IsBF), in general, have been traditionally dominated by men. But over the last two decades, we have seen more and more women shattering the industry’s glass ceiling. These exceptional female leaders and industry pioneers have inspired and motivated a new generation of female talent.
Cambridge IFA has been championing women empowerment and highlighting and promoting the role of women in Islamic banking and finance (IsBF). This year saw a few unpredictable scenarios arising in the world and subsequently affecting the banking and finance industry. The WOMANi 2021, features the top 300 women in Islamic Business and Finance, who have withstood the challenges and shown dynamic resilience in adapting to the new normal. Cambridge IFA celebrates these WOMANi.
METHODOLOGY OF WOMANi RANKING
This year’s WOMANi Report includes 300 leading women who have made their mark in Islamic business, including but not limited to IsBF, and are at the forefront of thousands of successful female entrepreneurs and executives in the industries. In compiling the list, Cambridge IFA canvassed a wide range of market opinions and conducted extensive data mining exercises before drawing up a definitive list of the 330 most influential women in Islamic business and finance, assessing their influence and leadership over their company and market sector, as well as career and performance to date. These assessments were carried out using a methodology based on three factors:
- Professional leadership
- Advocacy
- Industry-wide recognition
Each factor receives a score based on carefully considered contributions and positions of each woman. The
factors are then weighted to come up with an aggregated score for each individual, after which the ranks are determined and the WOMANi 300 List is derived. A lot of women are included from Islamic nonfinancial businesses, but primary focus has been on IsBF and its different sub-sectors, i.e., banking, asset management, academia, Shari’a advisory and other ancillary services.
The WOMANi 300 List is carefully drawn to ensure that only credible persons feature in it, as there are quite a few false claimants to the experience and expertise in IsBF. The WOMANi is the first systematically delineated ranking of women. We have also excluded pioneering personalities like Stella Cox, Datuk Noripah Kamso and Professor Normah Omar who topped the ranking in previous years. This is to ensure that each year a new leading woman’s role is acknowledged.
WOMANi 10
WOMANi 10 is the most prestigious list of leading women in Islamic business and finance. Having incredible self-confidence, fierce work ethics and genuine passion for the industry; these women have inspired and empowered a new generation of professionals through their indisputable accomplishments and determinations.
There are three remarkable entries in the WOMANi 10 List this year. Noraini Sulaiman (Acting Managing Director of Bank Islam Brunei Darussalam) is the new entry at No. 3. She is followed by a new entrant in the WOMANi 10 List, namely Fayruz Mohamed (Chairperson of SANZAF, South Africa) at No. 6. The third new entry to the list is Emina Sisic who was appointed as CEO/Managing Director of capturing the eighth position in the WOMANi global ranking.
DR SRI MULYANI INDRAWATI
MINISTER OF FINANCE, INDONESIA
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 01
Dr Sri Mulyani Indrawati is an Indonesian economist, serving as the Minister of Finance of the Republic of Indonesia, since July 2016. She has previously served as the Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer of the World Bank. She often represented the World Bank Group at the G20 and also chaired the International Development Association (IDA)− the World Bank’s fund for the poorest countries. She concurrently chairs the Development Committee a ministerial-level forum of the World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund for intergovernmental consensus-building on development issues. As a Finance Minister, Dr Indrawati was known as a tough reformist and was largely credited with strengthening Indonesia’s economy, increasing investments and steering Southeast Asia’s largest economy through the 2007–10 financial crisis. During her tenure, the country’s foreign exchange reserves reached an all-time high of $50 billion. She oversaw a reduction in public debt to about 30% of gross domestic product from 60%, making it easier for Indonesia to sell debt to foreign institutional investors.
PROFESSOR DR RUSNI HASSAN
DEAN, INSTITUTE OF ISLAMIC BANKING & FINANCE, INTERNATIONAL ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY MALAYSIA
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 02
Professor Dr Rusni Hassan is a renowned global industry expert in Islamic banking and finance and is involved with the Institute of Islamic Banking and Finance at the International Islamic University, Malaysia. She advises on Shari’a compliance aspects and issues, including waqf, cooperative society and Islamic pawnbroking.
Dr Rusni was a member of the Shariah Advisory Council at the Central Bank of Malaysia, a Shari’a Committee member for HDFC Maldives, an advisor to Women on Boards, Maldives, as well as the Secretary and Assistant Secretary in the Association of Shari’ah Advisors in Islamic Finance Malaysia (ASAS) and the International Council of Islamic Finance Educators (ICIFE). She is a registered Shari’a Advisor with the Securities Commission of Malaysia and the Association of Islamic Banks in Malaysia (AIBIM). She was also appointed as an independent board of directors in one of the leading Takaful companies in Malaysia.
FITRI HARTATI
PRESIDENT DIRECTOR, PT CAPITAL LIFE SYARIAH
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 04
Fitri Hartati is the President Director of Pt Capital Life Syariah and has previously served as the Operational Director of PT Capital Life Indonesia. She is experienced in the life insurance industry, especially in the operational section for more than 25 years, both in joint ventures and national companies. She is certified in the management of Life Insurance, Shari’a Insurance and Health Insurance, and has fulfilled Level 5 Insurance Company qualification from the Association of Indonesian Insurance Management Experts (AAMAI).
She won the title of the best full-fledged Shari’a life insurance company awarded by Infobank magazine. She believes that leadership is about instilling a passion for progress, evolving, being humble and cooperative while taking every opportunity for improvement.
RAJA TEH MAIMUNAH BINTI
RAJA ABDUL AZIZ
MANAGING DIRECTOR, WHOLESALE BANKING, AMBANK (M) BERHAD
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 05
Raja Teh Maimunah is responsible for the AmBank Group’s Wholesale Banking franchise covering both Islamic and conventional corporate banking, group treasury & markets, transaction banking, debt capital markets and corporate finance. She has also served as the CEO of AmInvestment Bank and was the CEO and Managing Director at Hong Leong Bank Group. She has 25 years of financial services experience covering corporate and investment banking, Islamic banking and digital banking. Her areas of expertise encompass Islamic banking contracts, digital payments and collections solutions, corporate financing, equity and debt origination, equity sales, mergers and acquisitions, proprietary investments, initial and secondary public offerings, asset-backed securitisation, and debt restructuring.
She is the Chartered Banker and a member at the Chartered Institute of Islamic Finance Professionals (CIFP). She is the board member of KWAP (Malaysia’s largest public services pension fund) as well as its Board Risk and Integrity Committee. She is also an Adviser on Islamic banking and finance at the World Islamic Economic Forum Foundation (WIEF). She is the recipient of multiple awards. She mentored senior women executives in a Women Leadership programme and has participated in the Ladies Empowerment and Action Program (LEAP) as a speaker.
FAYRUZ MOHAMED
(CA)SA, Cert.Dir., CeZM, CISI (IFQ) NATIONAL CHAIRPERSON, SANZAF (SOUTH AFRICAN NATIONAL ZAKAH FUND)
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 06
Fayruz Mohamed is a Chartered Accountant and Certified Director who serves as a non-executive director and independent audit committee member on various boards.
She is currently the National Chairperson of SANZAF (South African National Zakah Fund) where she has been involved for over two decades. Under her leadership and through the hard work of her team, SANZAF recently won the prestigious 3G Championship Award in Capacity Building and the 3G Transparency Award at the Global Good Governance Awards 2021.
She is certified in zakat management by IIIBF (International Islamic Institute of Business and Finance) in Malaysia. Her professional memberships include; the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA), the Institute of Directors of South Africa (IoDSA), the Public Sector Audit Committee Forum (PSACF), and the Audit Committee Working Forum. She is experienced in strategy formulation and execution, strategic business reviews and forecasts, corporate governance, financial performance and reporting, audit & risk compliance and financial & operational management. She is a leading female speaker in zakat education and has been invited to share her knowledge on topics related to zakat and Women in Leadership at a number of international events.
HUMAIRA AZAM
MANAGING DIRECTOR & CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, TRUST BANK LIMITED
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 09
Humaira Azam has the distinction of being the first female CEO of a commercial bank in Bangladesh. Prior to her new role, she served Trust Bank as the Additional Managing Director & Chief Risk Officer. Before joining TBL, she served Bank Asia as Deputy Managing Director and was also the Chief Risk Officer of the bank. She was the first woman to head a private commercial financial institution in Bangladesh (Managing Director & CEO of IPDC Bangladesh). She turned around IPDC, Bangladesh by restoring the capital and made significant progress in business and operational growth both in terms of quantity and quality through developing a strong deposit base, reducing dependency on banks for funding, rolling out specific policy to allow managed and sustainable credit growth including the composition of branches.
Humaira Azam started her career at ANZ Grindlays Bank. Since then, she has been involved in various leadership roles entailing problem-solving in a multicultural challenging environment. She directly worked with Mr Muhammad A. (Rumee) Ali and grew the local corporate business in ANZ Bank. She joined HSBC Bangladesh at its inception and laid a very strong framework for corporate banking/OBU, custodian and institutional banking including the formulation of 10 years’ strategy in Bangladesh.
HAIFA ABDULALI AL LAWATI
HEAD OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEPARTMENT, BANK NIZWA
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 10
Haifa AbdulAli Al Lawati is currently the Head of the Human Resource Department at Bank Nizwa, the first Bank in Oman. She has been a part of the Bank since its inception and has helped build the HR department from scratch. She took lead in areas of recruitment, employee relations, training, compensations and benefit, and development of HR policies. She started her career in petroleum development and the Occidental of Oman. She has over 25 years of experience and has led the HR department through many projects focusing on digitalisation, automation, e-learning, spreading awareness among employees, and employee engagement projects.
She is a Board member in the HR committee of the Oman Banking Association. She is a qualified AAT and has completed two stages of the Charted Institute Management Accountant (CIMA). She participated in the 5th Islamic Finance Leadership Programme at Clare College, University of Cambridge and won the Cambridge IBM award. She has also been awarded a GIFA for Human Capital, the GCC HR Leadership award and the Best Employer award 2020 & 2021.
DR IRUM SABA
PROGRAMME DIRECTOR/ASSISTANT PROFESSOR, INSTITUTE OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION, KARACHI
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 10
Dr Irum Saba is an Associate Professor, the Department of Finance at the Institute of Business Administration-Karachi, Pakistan, on deputation from the State Bank of Pakistan (central bank); a board member on the Standing Committee on “Islamic Banking” 2020; Grand Councillor, Chartered Institute of Islamic Finance Professionals (CIIF); Malaysia Coordinator, (Academics and Research) Centre for Excellence in Islamic Finance (CEIF), IBA Karachi, Pakistan; Programme Director, Islamic Banking and Finance, IBA-Karachi, Pakistan.
She has extensive regulatory experience with a specific focus to promote Islamic banking and finance while working in the Islamic Banking Department of SBP. She is a Shari’a registered financial planner (Shari’ah RFP). She holds the Chartered Islamic Finance Professional (CIFP) credential from INCEIF with distinction and PhD in Islamic Finance from INCEIF as well as MCom with distinction and PGD in Islamic banking and insurance from the Institute of Islamic Banking and Insurance (IIBI), London.
EMAN MOHAMMED AL- BINGHADEER
HEAD OF INTERNAL SHARI’A AUDIT, BAHRAIN ISLAMIC BANK
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 10
Eman Al-Binghadeer is Head of Internal Shari’a Audit at Bahrain Islamic Bank (BisB). She is as such the first female Shari’a auditor in the Kingdom of Bahrain and the Gulf region as well as the first female head, leading the way for aspiring Arab women who wish to have successful careers in Shari’a advisory and structuring. She has over 22 years of experience, with 18 years in Islamic finance and Shari’a auditing.
She is the Assistant Secretary of the Shari’a Supervisory Board and its Executive Committee and liaises with the members of the Shari’a Advisory Board of the Bank. She is in charge of enhancing the bank’s Shari’a auditing and accounting systems, monitoring operations from a Shari’a perspective and implementing the necessary measures and actions to ensure compliance. She is also the Assistant Secretary of the Committee on zakat, donations, and qard al hasan, preparing reports on the commission. She is a Certified Islamic Banker, Certified Shari’a Adviser and Auditor and Certified Specialist in Islamic Accounting and has previously held several positions in the Accounting & Auditing Organisation for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI).
DR NIDA KHAN
FOUNDER AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, NASH FINTECHX
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 11
Nida Khan is the Founder and CEO of Nash fintechX, which is a pioneering technology solutions provider as well as a FinTech consultancy firm based in Luxembourg, specialising in blockchain and artificial intelligence. Nida holds a doctorate in computer science from the University of Luxembourg, where her research focused on the use of blockchain in finance. Her research proposal won the prestigious FNR grant given by the government of Luxembourg for innovative industrial projects.
She is also credited with the development of a novel consensus mechanism based on MapReduce, which was used by her to implement a new blockchain platform prototype. She has worked on industrial projects in social finance, decentralised finance, micropayments and blockchain governance. She is a pioneer for giving the economic impact of blockchain-based micropayments, proposing a mathematical framework for blockchain governance and using smart contracts to preserve privacy in blockchains to ensure adherence to GDPR.
SUAD AL BALUSHI
HEAD OF GLOBAL MARKETS DIVISION, BANK NIZWA
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 11
Suad Al Balushi is currently serving in the capacity of Head of Global Markets Division at Bank Nizwa; responsible for managing the overall operations related to the Global Markets Division of the Bank, in line with the approved policies and guidelines to maintain and monitor the liquidity of the Bank’s assets. She is also responsible to develop the treasury function’s strategies, business plans, policies and budgets following the Bank’s overall strategies and directions. She was part of the signing of Wakala agreements with a conventional bank for the first time in the Bank’s history and won the best project for Trade and Treasury Strategy.
She has over 15 years of successful experience in the banking sector, strategic and operations leadership. She is also the first Omani to achieve ACI Diploma Certificate, which is the top certificate for Treasury professionals and the first Omani Female Treasurer in the banking sector.
DR NERMA SARAČEVIĆ
STARTUP MENTOR, MOZAIK FOUNDATION
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 15
Dr Nerma Saračević is currently the Startup Mentor at Mozaik Foundation. Previously she was the Manager of Branch Sarajevo, Central Osiguranje dd, Bosnia & Herzegovina.
She has also been the Former Director of Regional Centre Zenica at Wiener osiguranje, a member of the Vienna Insurance Group from Austria. She is a member of several business associations and works with the NGOs specialising in educating and mentoring young people to become future owners of startup companies.
Her presence at the Durham Islamic Finance Summer School enriched her knowledge of Islamic finance and strengthened her commitment to research this topic. She started her research in the field of Islamic finance in 2012, and her focus has been on the pure products of the Islamic financial industry – musharaka and mudaraba and related products. Her greatest professional achievement is working with young colleagues who, as of now, are positioned as successful managers in various financial institutions, or other companies.
MARIAM ISABEL ROMERO
ARIAS
CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, INSTITUTO HALAL
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 16
Mariam Isabel Romero Arias is a social and market analyst and the CEO of the Instituto Halal and President of Junta Islamica, a religious community. She was the first female director of the Congress and Exhibition Centre of Cordoba. Her work is focused on the development of the Halal Concept in Spain and Latin-American through Instituto Halal, one of the top Halal certification bodies in the world and the main in Spain and Latin-American. Under her leadership, Instituto Halal consolidated as an innovative and ethical business with clients in Europe and Latin America.
She is responsible for a team working for the empowerment of young Muslims. She is a contributor for different media ventures and newspapers in Spain and has been invited as a lecturer and Keynote Speaker on the Halal industry at various national and international conferences. She is an active member of the International Entrepreneurs Network. She is part of the mentorship programme of the International Network “Inspiring Girl”, a member of “Woman Talent Spain” and the Spanish Islamic Commission Advisory Board, a member of the Board of Trustees of “Forum of Business Woman” and a member of “Marzeras” network of Empowered Women.
YASMINA FRANCKE
CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, SOUTH AFRICAN NATIONAL ZAKAH FUND (SANZAF)
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 17
Yasmina Francke is the CEO of the South African National Zakah Fund (SANZAF), one of the largest zakat institutions in South Africa. She was appointed in 2018 as the first female CEO of the organisation. She has over 25 years of experience in the corporate world where she mostly worked in the financial services sector at a few top South African blue-chip companies.
In her current role, she manages 8 regional managers with a total of 108 staff members across 29 offices in South Africa. She represents South Africa at the World Zakat Forum (WZF) and plays an active role as the Secretary General of the World Zakat Forum focusing on Southern Africa. She was instrumental for the organisation to receive a grant of R10m from the Solidarity Fund to distribute food vouchers to those impacted most by the COVID-19 lockdown in South Africa.
LUISA EVARISTO
CHIEF RISK OFFICER, ETIQA INSURANCE
& TAKAFUL, AGEAS COUNTRY MANAGER MALAYSIA
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 25
Luisa Evaristo is the Chief Risk Officer of Etiqa Insurance & Takaful and a member of the Senior Executive Committee of Maybank Ageas Holdings Berhad since 2014. She is a permanent invitee to the Audit Committee Board, Board Risk Management Committee and Board Oversight Committee of Information Technology. She has co-created and transformed the risk management strategy, standards as well as embedded practices across the Etiqa companies based in Malaysia and Singapore.
She is and has been involved in enabling and providing risk-challenge leadership across multiple regulatory and strategic initiatives in the domain of finance, compliance, actuarial, technology and innovation. She is a dynamic and acknowledgeable forward-looking leader in financial services, with over 25 years of experience in banking, insurance and pension funds management in Europe and Asia. She is a member of the Maybank Group Women Council committed to mentoring and coaching women to rise in their chosen careers.
NASHA PHEDRA AMIN
REGIONAL HEAD OF ISLAMIC LEGAL, CIMB ISLAMIC BANK BERHAD
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 26
Nasha Phedra is the Regional Head of Islamic Legal at CIMB Islamic Bank Berhad and advises on Islamic banking and finance matters. She started her career as an advocate & solicitor of the High Court of Malaysia, after being called to the Bar at Penang High Court, paving way for her to become a full-fledged lawyer with immense experience in the legal area.
One of her significant contributions to the market is her involvement from the legal and documentation perspective, in the development of Collateralised Murabahah, a new product in the niche Islamic market and is currently being adopted by the IFIs in Malaysia. Her role as a Business Sponsor is to lead the change by providing guidance and necessary solutions, support cultural initiatives and look for ways to reinforce the desired culture within CIMB and lead to achieve solutions for improvement. She is currently launching and spearheading CIMB Islamic’s Ladies Club which acts as a platform and support group for the empowerment of women within CIMB Islamic.
DR WAJEEHA HUSSAIN
AWADH
CHIEF DIGITAL OFFICER, AL BARAKA BANKING GROUP
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 28
Dr Wajeeha Awadh is a FinTech and digital banking expert. At Al Baraka Banking Group, she looks after the digital transformation strategies and is currently engaged with several digital banking and FinTech projects. She has also been part of the Strategic Planning Department, and Sustainability and Social Responsibility Department, and has worked on projects including the establishment of a new Islamic bank in Morocco, group-wide product intelligence system, group-wide sustainability reporting, and integrating United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with Al Baraka Sustainable Development Goals.
She is an advisory board member in Bahrain FinTech Bay, one of the largest FinTech Hubs in the MENA region in addition to being an external advisory board member for the College of Business and Finance in Ahlia University in the Kingdom of Bahrain. She has been awarded a PhD in Management with a research focus on FinTech from Asia Pacific University of Technology and Innovation – Malaysia. She has a number of academic and non-academic publications to her name and has been a speaker at FinTech-related conferences, seminars, and events locally and internationally.
JENNIFER SCHWALBENBERG
ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR & HEAD OF CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY, DDCAP GROUPTM
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 35
Jennifer Schwalbenberg is an Associate Director in the business development team and the Head of Corporate Responsibility for DDCAP GroupTM. Her legal and regulatory skillsets support DDCAP’s business origination as well as the ongoing alignment of its adherence to Shari’a principles with other sustainable and responsible business considerations.
She also supports DDCAP’s involvement in global and UK responsible business initiatives, including the UN Principles for Responsible Investment (UN PRI), the UN Principles for Responsible Banking (UN PRB), Futuredotnow (a coalition to address the digital skills gap in the UK), Heart of the City (a London-based programme to promote the development of responsible business practices in SMEs), and DDCAP’s signatory status to Her Majesty’s Treasury Women in Finance Charter. She is also an Emissary of the RFI Foundation, a thinktank for responsible finance, which was established to bring together the different forms of responsible and sustainable investment and finance and promote convergence in standards, practices and regulations.
SHEILA HALIM
LEAD COLLABORATOR IN THE GROUP CEO OFFICE, MAYBANK AGEAS HOLDINGS BHD
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 36
Sheila Halim is the Lead Collaborator in the Group CEO Office of Maybank Ageas Holdings Bhd, a holding company of ETIQA Group Insurance & Takaful. She collaborates with Malaysia and regional project owners, senior leaders and CEOs of all countries under the Group, in their digital initiatives. The digital transformation drive is key to enabling and scaling the business of ETIQA through great collaboration and positive mindsets, with people working together for a common goal.
She is an award-winning senior corporate professional whose career had demonstrated repeated success in building businesses in the fund management services into sustainable and award-winning organisations.
FARA MOHAMMAD
PARTNER, KEYSTONELAW LIMITED
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 36
Fara Mohammad is a partner in Keystonelaw Limited, an international law firm awarded as ‘The Law Firm of the Year 2020’ and one of the few UK law firms listed on the London Stock Exchange. A hands-on thought leader in areas of investments, management, leadership and sustainability, she has been working in the corporate and finance industry for more than 20 years in London, Dubai and Kuala Lumpur, and her work exposure spans the UK, Europe, Asia and the MENA region. She is a board advisor and lawyer by profession.
She is involved in inward investments across three continents. Her experience covers different types of investments and financial products covering a range of asset types, investment classes and industry sectors. She advises global clients at a strategic level and deals with C-suite teams and the board of directors from the early strategic and structuring stage, prior to the execution of a business transaction.
DR HIND LEBDAOUI
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR, FINANCE SCHOOL
OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION (SBA), AL AKHAWAYN UNIVERSITY
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 42
Dr Hind Lebdaoui is an Assistant Professor of Finance at the School of Business Administration (SBA) of Al Akhawayn University in Ifrane, Morocco where she currently teaches finance courses to both graduate and undergraduate students. She is also the academic coordinator of graduate programs at SBA. She joined the faculty of Shanghai University of Finance & Economics to teach for two years before joining AUI in 2016.
She spent a decade in China, where she focused on the advancement of finance and economics both in China and developing countries through her professional experience in Chinese companies and academia. Her research focuses on finance, Islamic banking, ethical finance and behavioural finance/marketing decision, financial development, and economic growth. She has presented her work at international conferences in different parts of the globe. She also served as a reviewer of many well-ranked journals.
UZMA FAYYAZ
PRODUCT MANAGER, BANK ALFALAH LIMITED-ISLAMIC BANKING GROUP
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 43
Uzma Fayyaz is an Assistant Vice President, Product Development Department at Bank Alfalah Limited – Islamic Banking Group with major responsibility to look after Corporate, Commercial, SME, Treasury and Trade product portfolios by developing new products. She is working in close coordination with the Learning and Training department of Bank Alfalah Limited with respect to designing training sessions of Islamic banking products for sales & operations staff to keep them abreast with the latest Islamic banking product developments and improvements in the existing product base.
She serves as a core liaison between the Shari’a Department, business divisions of BAFL IBG, State Bank of Pakistan and the Product Department itself. She kicked off her career in Islamic banking as an operations officer at a branch in Dubai Islamic Bank. With a passion for public speaking and teaching, she has served as a Faculty in PAF-KIET and Bahria University.
DR RAHMATINA AWALIAH
KASRI
DIRECTOR OF ISLAMIC ECONOMICS AND BUSINESS CENTER (PEBS), FACULTY OF ECONOMICS AND BUSINESS, UNIVERSITAS INDONESIA (FEB UI)
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 46
Dr Rahmatina Awaliah Kasri is the Director of Islamic Economics and Business Center (PEBS) at the Faculty of Economics and Business, Universitas Indonesia (FEB UI). Previously, she was the Director of Islamic Economics Undergraduate Program at the oldest university in the country and Treasurer of the Indonesian Association of Islamic Economics Undergraduate Programs (APSEII). Currently, she also serves as the Chairwoman of the Jakarta Chapter of the Indonesian Association of Islamic Economist (IAEI) and a member of the Expert Board of Indonesia Islamic Economic Society (MES), two leading institutions in developing Islamic economics in Indonesia.
She specialises in Islamic economics and finance as well as development economics. More recently, she has started collaborative research with international scholars in the halal industry (including tobacco controls), Islamic digital and behavioural economics and Islamic political economics. She was also part of the main team developing the Indonesia Masterplan of Islamic Economy (MEKSI) 2019-2024 and currently supporting the Indonesia Halal Industry Masterplan development.
MANAL ADNAN SAAD AL
RUBAIAN
DEPUTY GENERAL MANAGER – INTERNAL AUDIT DEPARTMENT, KUWAIT INTERNATIONAL BANK
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 48
Manal AlRubaian is the Deputy General Manager – Internal Audit at the Kuwait International Bank. She has over 13 years of experience in operational, credit and compliance auditing, including 6 years in leadership roles. She has a track record of identifying credit, operational and compliance-related control weaknesses and formulating recommendations to improve the Bank’s control environment. She has successfully established, organised and managed the internal audit department, meeting deadlines, quality standards, budgets, and maintaining relationships with senior management.
Previously, she was the Head of Internal Audit at AlRajhi Bank in Kuwait. She started her career with the Kuwaiti Islamic bank, Boubyan Bank as the first lady in the internal audit and her admission led the way for other employing women in the profession. She is also a representative member of the Al Rajhi Bank – Kuwait branch in the internal audit committee of the Kuwait Banks Association, a professional platform for exchanging experiences and practices of the profession in the banking sector.
DR KHAIRUNNISA MUSARI
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR, DEPARTMENT OF ISLAMIC ECONOMICS, POSTGRADUATE PROGRAM AND FACULTY OF ISLAMIC BUSINESS ECONOMICS, KIAI HAJI ACHMAD SIDDIQ STATE ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY (UIN KHAS)
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 49
Dr Khairunnisa Musari is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Islamic Economics, Postgraduate Program and Faculty of Islamic Business Economics, Kiai Haji Achmad Siddiq State Islamic University (UIN KHAS), Jember, Indonesia. She is the Vice Secretary of the Indonesian Association of Islamic Economist (IAEI) for the Provincial Board of East Java. She is also the Secretary-General of the Indonesian Economist Association (ISEI) of Jember and a Member of the Expert Board of Islamic Economic Society (MES) of Lumajang.
She is a lecturer, researcher, reviewer and columnist. Her interest concentrates on issues relating to sukuk, waqf, esham, fiscal & monetary policies, circular economy, halal logistics, climate change, and Islamic microfinance/nanofinance. She has advocated these issues in articles in local/national/international daily newspapers, magazines, and online news media.
SHAMMY KHATOON
VICE PRESIDENT/UNIT HEAD CREDIT OPERATIONS & SHARIAH DOCUMENTATION BANK ALFALAH LIMITED-ISLAMIC BANKING-PAKISTAN
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 49
Shammy Khatoon is presently serving Bank Alfalah Limited-Islamic Banking in the capacity of Unit Head Credit Operations and Shariah Documentation (COSD) and is very well-versed in Islamic finance products, Islamic contracts documentation and Shari’a compliance rules and regulations. She works extensively with the higher management, business teams and operations team to work out Shari’a-compliant financial products and services within the ambit of the bank’s risk policy to fulfil their working capital and long-term financing needs.
She is certified Islamic finance professional by Ethica Institute of Islamic Finance Dubai and National Institute of Banking and Finance (NIBAF-SBP), Pakistan. She is an active member of the Diversity and Inclusion Team of the bank to inspire and motivate the females in the organisation to step forward, break stereotypes and emerge as successful, creative and professional women. She works with the Product and Development Team to develop and prepare the new products based on Islamic Principals to be used for the business needs of clients.
SAIDATUL LEIZA BINTI
SULEIMAN
ASSISTANT VICE PRESIDENT, MARKETING
& COMMUNICATIONS, BANK MUAMALAT MALAYSIA BERHAD
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 49
Saidatul Leiza Suleiman is currently the Assistant Vice President of Marketing & Communications at Bank Muamalat Malaysia Berhad and is responsible for overseeing client relations, PR and marketing strategies as well as the creative side of promotional and advertising artwork of Bank Muamalat. She has more than 20 years of experience in Public Relations and Corporate Communication activities with 10 years of prevalent knowledge and exposure in the financial industry in the areas of marketing and communications.
Leveraging on her creative side, she generates ideas with her team and produces content for sales collateral, advertising, websites and printed signage for events. Working in a competitive industry, she also conducts competitive analysis, business support and finance solutions for charities and social ventures as well as managing online promotions. She was also at the forefront of the Bank Muamalat’s communication plan during the system migration in 2014 – the MBS system.
SHAISTA MUKADAM
SENIOR LECTURER/COURSE LEADER, BSC
(HONS) ACCOUNTING AND ISLAMIC FINANCE BIRMINGHAM CITY UNIVERSITY, UK
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 50
Shaista Mukadam is a Senior Lecturer at the Birmingham City University. She pursued her PGCE from the University of Greenwich and was offered a Visiting Lecturer post at Birmingham City University. She continued to research on the various facets of Islamic finance and built a cohort of 50 to 100 students in a couple of years.
She created a course to teach the fundamentals of Financial and Management Accounting as well as Islamic finance. The first BSc (Hons) Accounting and Islamic Finance was launched in September 2021, with CISI accreditation. She continued working with ACCA, CIMA, ICAEW and AAOIFI to obtain exemptions from their qualifications for students of this course. Her purpose to learn and impart Islamic finance knowledge to the next generation of learners is to highlight Islamic finance as a brilliant alternative.
JENNIFER NG ABDULLAH
VICE PRESIDENT & HEAD, PARTNERSHIP DISTRIBUTION DIVISION, GREAT EASTERN TAKAFUL BERHAD
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 54
Jennifer Ng Abdullah is the Vice President & Head, Partnership Distribution Division at Great Eastern Takaful Berhad. She specialises in Islamic wealth management and with a deep passion to ensure that Islamic options for banking and Takaful are accessible to all, including the underserved, she has spent over 14 years developing and distributing Shari’a-compliant products through banks and intermediary channels.
As Head of Partnership Distribution in Great Eastern Takaful, she leads her team to promote Bancatakaful products through banks and intermediary channels. In Alliance Islamic Bank, she led a team to develop the Halal-in-One Program for the Bank; a complete Halal business support programme aimed at helping small-and-medium enterprises (SMEs) obtain halal certification from the Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (JAKIM).
DR NURHASTUTY KESUMO
WARDHANI
(SE, CA, MSc) SENIOR LECTURER, TRISAKTI UNIVERSITY
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 56
Dr Nurhastuty Kesumo Wardhani, SE, CA, MSc is a Senior Lecturer at Trisakti University. She is also in charge as the Coordinator of Independent Campus (Kampus Merdeka) related to the International Program at the Faculty of Economics and Business at Trisakti University. She is also a co-chair of the Doctoral Colloquium of Asia-Pacific Management Accounting Association.
She is the Chairman and co-founder of INSPIRE (Islamic Finance Spirit for Indonesia) that is dedicated to supporting Islamic business and finance in Indonesia. INSPIRE has been actively conveying the message of Islamic finance through Islamic banking seminars and Halal Industry that collaborated with the Director of OJK and academics, and industry speakers. She is also a Board Member of the Institute Halal of Investing, in Oregon, United States. She is passionate about boosting the Islamic finance industry through her research papers in corporate governance, banking, ethics and Islamic finance.
DR RUHAINI MUDA
SENIOR LECTURER, DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMICS AND FINANCIAL STUDIES, FACULTY OF BUSINESS MANAGEMENT, UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI MARA, MALAYSIA
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 57
Ruhaini Muda, PhD is a Senior Lecturer at the Department of Economics and Financial Studies, Faculty of Business Management, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia. She is also a research fellow at the University’s Accounting Research Institute. Since then, she has been continuously involved in funded research projects, both as a team member as well as principal researcher. Prior to joining the academic field, she was an Assistant Director (Economic Affairs) with the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (MIDA).
Presently, her research focuses on the assessment and reporting of social outcomes managed by corporations, Islamic financial institutions and non-profit organisations.
She is particularly interested in exploring the development of a sustainable social sector eco-system, with particular focus on the contributions of Islamic social finance for delivering social initiatives that truly impact stakeholders and the wider community.
ROSFADZILANI BINTI
GHANI
PRINCIPAL OFFICER, ETIQA OFFSHORE INSURANCE (L) LTD
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 58
Rosfadzilani Binti Ghani is heading an entity, the Etiqa Offshore Insurance. Etiqa emerged when Maybank Ageas, Maybank’s insurance and takaful arm merged with the Malaysia National Insurance Berhad, Malaysia’s largest national insurer and its subsidiary, Takaful Nasional Sdn Bhd, Malaysia’s premier Takaful provider. She is also the Compliance Officer in charge of the legislation and regulations including Anti Money Laundering.
She is a minority in the Labuan IBFC under the Islamic business and finance industry and is also the Council Member of the Labuan International Insurance Association. She received the title of the Top 300 Most Influential Women in Islamic Business and Finance in 2019. She has been guiding women professionals through her experiences and ensuring that they achieve success in the industry along with training them to achieve their goals.
SITI HAJAR RIZLAN
VICE PRESIDENT OF BRAND COMMUNICATIONS, ETIQA INSURANCE AND TAKAFUL
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 59
Siti Hajar is the Vice President of Brand Communications, Etiqa – Malaysia’s leading Insurance and Takaful company. She has over 21 years of experience in providing strategic brand propositions, as well as PR, CSR, digital and product marketing leadership in the uniquely challenging industry of financial services. Her current role includes managing the execution and integration of overall branding and communications for Etiqa, from corporate brand building, public relations, digital and social media, CSR and events.
She also manages brand communication strategy and implementation for all Etiqa companies, and plans and executes media communication strategies to improve brand equity. Her areas of expertise include strategic planning and execution, branding & proposition, public relations, media crisis management, digital marketing, Islamic banking product development, and product management.
ARBINA MOHSIN QURESHI
PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT & MANAGEMENT SPECIALIST, BANK ALFALAH PAKISTAN
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 149
Arbina Mohsin Qureshi is a seasoned banker with over 14 years of experience in product management and development within the banking sector. She is currently heading Islamic Premier in Bank Alfalah Pakistan, and is not only responsible for launching Premier Banking at the bank but also for managing the end-to-end segment covering the pre-and post-launch prerequisites.
Her experience encapsulates Islamic banking and conventional products both with expertise in launching products, Islamic banking contracts, digital payments & collections solutions, marketing management, sales management, process management, audit & internal controls, training, and portfolio management. She is the recipient of multiple awards within the organisation and is a freelance mentor for women leadership and career continuation.
AMNA RAFIQ MUGHAL
ASSISTANT PRODUCT MANAGER, BANK ALFALAH ISLAMIC
WOMANi 2021 RANK: 178
Amna Rafiq Mughal oversees the products, marketing and new initiatives at Bank Alfalah Islamic with an accumulated portfolio of more than PKR175 billion. Her core competencies include product development & management, analytics, business strategy, sales structuring, marketing, research and training. Within her professional experience in the Islamic banking industry, she has successfully developed and launched key product offerings to cater to different market segments like corporates, individuals, foreign currency investors and senior citizens. Her first product, the Recurring Value Deposit (RVD) was awarded the Best Savings Product at GIFA in 2020.
She has been awarded a gold medal from the State Bank of Pakistan for her exemplary performance in the IBP Superior Qualification Examinations. She has also been recognised as the youngest banker and the highest-achieving female candidate in ISQ for the year 2019.
