Home lists Top 100 most powerful Arabs 2021 Mishal Kanoo Chairman, Kanoo Group Origin: Bahrain/UAE Residence: UAE Sector: Diversified The Dubai-headquartered Kanoo Group positions itself as a familyowned business. But chairman Mishal Kanoo is dead against the idea of “wastas” or nepotism, having been known to remove family members from prominent positions and replace them with external professionals. The only thing that matters in his books is experience – something that he has carefully honed during his own leadership over his three-decade career and one that holds him in good stead as he manages the diverse conglomerate with interests in oil and gas, shipping, travel and chemicals, among others.