Yousef Abdullah Al Benyan Al Benyan has worked hard to advance the fortunes of SABIC since first taking on the role of acting CEO in February 2015, despite tough market conditions and changes to regulation impacting the Gulf region’s current largest listed company. His efforts have beeng paying off, with signs of some relief in 2017 as the firm… Al Benyan has worked hard to advance the fortunes of SABIC since first taking on the role of acting CEO in February 2015, despite tough market conditions and changes to regulation impacting the Gulf region’s current largest listed company. His efforts have beeng paying off, with signs of some relief in 2017 as the firm reported a 10.7 per cent increase in third quarter profit. Al Benyan has made no secret of his intentions for SABIC to climb up the global petrochemical ladder from its current position as the fourth largest firm, stating in May the company was evaluating up to $6bn of acquisitions. It continued to make moves in the second half of the year including the August acquisition of a 50 per cent stake in a Saudi petrochemical venture with Shell it did not already own and a memorandum of understanding with Saudi Aramco to build a $20bn complex for converting crude oil to chemicals. The company also said in December it would open an office in Iraq and boost investments in China. Meanwhile work continues on a $10bn petrochemical complex being built in partnership with Exxon Mobil in the US. Vice chairman and CEO, SABIC Origin:KSA Residence:KSA Sector:Industry