ABANA celebrates 25th anniversary honoring Abdul Aziz Al-Ghurair, CEO of Mashreq

Mr. Al-Ghurair was the first UAE National to receive the prestigious ABANA Achievement Award for his business acumen, dedication to excellence and substantial achievements.

Addressing the audience, ABANA President Laura Osman praised Al-Ghurair for his accomplishments, describing him as the "most remarkable, outstanding and exceptional leader" who is a "pioneer and a visionary and whose leadership has transformed Mashreq into one of the leading banking institutions in the UAE and the Region."

Al Ghurair commented:

"The award is recognition that an Arab institution has the quality comparable to any other international bank, and this is an encouragement for Arab CEO Leaders to excel at what they do. It's like receiving the Nobel Prize, coming from people in your industry. It is a great recognition for any Arab institution."

The Award was presented by the Kuwaiti businessman and friend of the organization, Mr. Faisal Hamad Al-Ayyar, CEO of KIPCO, Kuwait Projects Co. (Holding), who served as the introductory speaker at the event.

The ABANA Achievement Award Dinner is the premier event of the year for the Arab and American financial community. The 2008 award ceremony brought together 300 international dignitaries, business leaders and professionals within the financial services industry.

Previous recipients of the ABANA Award have included the Lebanese banking system represented by H. E. Riad Salamé, Dr. Mohamed El-Erian, Faisal Hamad Al Ayyar, Lubna Olayan, Dr. Richard Debs and Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal.

A strategic leader and man of distinction, Mr. Al-Ghurair came to the limelight in the 1980s as he was adamant about distinguishing Mashreq and taking it to new levels of success. Since then, under his leadership, the bank has indeed flourished, constantly being first in launching innovative, convenient product and services in the United Arab Emirates market. The ABANA award comes as his third lifetime achievement award this year after receiving the Euromoney Award for Outstanding Life Time Achievement and The CEO of the Year Award from CEO ME.