Arab Bank for Investment and Foreign Trade (Al Masraf), an Abu Dhabi-based leading bank, has appointed Hitesh Thakkar as the Chief Financial Officer, effective immediately.

Announcing the appointment, the bank stated, “We are delighted to welcome Hitesh Thakkar as our new Chief Financial Officer!”

Hitesh joins us with an impressive career spanning over 25 years in banking and finance, having previously held senior and pivotal roles at leading banks like Emirates NBD, ABN AMRO, ICICI Bank, and BNP Paribas.

Adding, “He is known for his strength in engaging with the Board and being a strategic ally to the C-suite—augmenting organizational performance, liquidity and capital management, value creation, cost management, investor relations, regulatory governance, and leading high-performing teams.”

Most recently, Thakkar served as Group Head of Finance – Retail Banking & Wealth Management at Emirates NBD for over six years, while also serving as a Non-Executive Director for Investment Funds and Asset Management operations.

In his previous roles, he served Emirates Islamic Bank as the CFO & Head of Strategy, Emirates NBD (first stint) as Group Head of Business Performance & Finance, ABN AMRO Bank as AVP Finance, and held other roles in India.

“Hitesh's collaborative leadership style and financial acumen will be crucial in strengthening our financial resilience, propelling growth, and enhancing long-term value for all stakeholders,” the company added.

Fuad Mohamed, who was recently appointed as Al Masraf’s new CEO, welcomed Thakkar to the leadership team, adding, “A core focus for Al Masraf has been strengthening our management team, which serves as the foundation for effectively executing our growth strategy and delivering strong results and long-term value for our clients and shareholders.

I am delighted to welcome Hitesh to his new role. He joins at a pivotal time in our growth journey, and I look forward to his valuable contributions in his respective areas.”

“We will pursue our ambitious vision relentlessly and accelerate the pace of investments in our growth strategy, with a focus on reinforcing capital efficiency and enhancing our risk and compliance frameworks. We are confident that Hitesh’s contribution will help us build a more resilient and future-ready financial institution.”

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Thakkar is a qualified Chartered Accountant and has completed Executive Management and Business Leadership programs from Harvard Business School. He also completed his Bachelor's in Commerce from R.A. Podar College, Mumbai.