Hawkamah Institute and Union of Arab Banks announce new Bank Corporate Governance Award

Banks are invited to apply for the Award by submitting replies to a questionnaire, which can be obtained via the Hawkamah and UAB websites. The winner will be announced at the UAB 'Annual Arab Banking Conference' to be held in October 2007.

The winning bank will be selected after a rigorous assessment of all the submitted material by an international panel of experts. Panel members will include Charles Freeland, a well-respected international banking consultant, former Deputy Secretary General, Basel Committee on Banking; Michael Stevenson, Middle East Senior Partner (PWC) and Ambassador John Bohn, who is currently Commissioner at California Public Utilities Commission and Chair of Globalnet Venture Partners. The Award, which provides recognition to banks that improve corporate governance practices and build their brand equity on corporate governance, is a joint initiative between Hawkamah and UAB.

The criteria for the Hawkamah - UAB Bank Corporate Governance Award cover a number of key areas including:

• Commitment to good corporate governance

• Structure and functioning of the Board of Directors (or equivalent Supervisory Board)

• Controlled environment and processes

• Transparency and disclosure

• Treatment of minority shareholders

Dr. Nasser Saidi, Executive Director, Hawkamah Institute for Corporate Governance commented, 'The development and implementation of good corporate governance policies and practices is crucial for banks in the Arab world and a core building block of sound financial markets. The Hawkamah Institute for Corporate Governance has made considerable progress in raising awareness of corporate governance and this Award is another milestone to demonstrate the importance of corporate governance and to further enhance the implementation of such policies within the banking sector across the region. We are pleased to foster better corporate governance with our partner the Union of Arab Banks and are thankful for the support of MasterCard.'

Dr. Fouad Shaker, Secretary General, Union of Arab Banks, commented, 'The UAB is playing a vital and leading role in developing the Arab banking industry in line with international requirements while meeting the local needs of the region. Along with our role comes the responsibility of raising awareness of corporate governance and encouraging banks to further implement corporate governance policies. The UAB is therefore focused on developing good governance, transparency and accountability in the Arab region. We believe the Hawkamah - UAB Bank Corporate Governance Award will reinforce the importance of corporate governance initiatives in the banking industry.'

Denzil Lawson, General Manager, Middle East & Levant, MasterCard Worldwide commented, 'This Award recognizes the importance of financial institutions as key drivers of the economy. MasterCard, as a founding sponsor of the Hawkamah Institute, is pleased to support this Award that seeks to build open and transparent markets and drives efficiencies in the payment system.'