HE Abdul Aziz Al Ghurair The Al Ghurair family has had an unquestionable impact on the UAE’s banking community since the founding of Mashreq in 1967, with Abdul Aziz only growing this perception in recent years as chairman of the UAE Banks Federation. Among his main moves in 2017 were to direct Mashreq towards a more digital future, with the… The Al Ghurair family has had an unquestionable impact on the UAE’s banking community since the founding of Mashreq in 1967, with Abdul Aziz only growing this perception in recent years as chairman of the UAE Banks Federation. Among his main moves in 2017 were to direct Mashreq towards a more digital future, with the launch of a digital banking platform and plans to shrink physical branches in favour of online banking services over the next three years. Outside of the UAE’s third largest lender, which posted a 12 per cent increase in profit for the first nine months of 2017, Al Ghurair is also playing a major role in his family’s philanthropic efforts. The Abdullah Al Ghurair Foundation for Education said in December it had provided 787 scholarships to Arab students less than two years after Al Ghurair’s father pledged to donate a third of his wealth – or $1.1bn – to form the philanthropic organisation. Even with these efforts, the Al Ghurair family is still the second richest in the UAE, according to Forbes, with a net worth of $7.3bn in January 2018. CEO, Mashreq Origin:UAE Residence:UAE Sector:Finance