Latest news with #NBKRISE
Arab Times
20-05-2025
- Business
- Arab Times
NBK's Shaikha Al-Bahar only Kuwaiti on Fortune's 100 list
KUWAIT CITY, May 20, (Agencies): Deputy Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) Shaikha Al-Bahar is the only Kuwaiti who made it to the 2025 100 Most Powerful Women in Business List that Fortune released on Tuesday. The list consists of a hundred influential businesswomen in the finance, technology, health care, telecom, retail, energy and other industries. In 1977, Al-Bahar joined NBK, where she proved her leadership capabilities as she rose through the ranks over the years. At present, she is the only woman in the executive management team of the bank. She currently heads NBK-France and Egypt; in addition to her post as board member of NBK (International) -- the subsidiary of the bank in the United Kingdom. Al-Bahar was the brain behind the launching of NBK RISE, a program that aims to empower women leaders and train them within nine months to assume leadership posts. NBK is one of the largest financial institutions in Kuwait and one of the leading banks in the region. The total value of its assets as at the end of March reached more than $135 billion. Group CEO of First Abu Dhabi Bank in the United Arab Emirates Hana Al-Rostamani joins Al-Bahar as the only two women from the Gulf on the list, ranking 76th and 92nd respectively. The Fortune editors compiled the list based on company size and health; in addition to an executive's career path, influence, innovation, and efforts to make business better. The 2025 list includes 52 women from the United States of America and 48 from other countries as follows: eight from China; seven each from France and the United Kingdom; three each from Germany, Singapore and Brazil; two each from Australia, Hong Kong, Japan and Spain; and one each from Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates. Chief Operator at Costco and merchant Claudine Adamo, who ranked 43rd, is one of 16 newcomers. She helped millions of Americans navigate inflation by keeping prices low on essentials, and the next-gen execs such as ByteDance CFO Julie Gao (81st), who steered the finances of the TikTok owner through its tangles with the US government. Following are the top 10 Most Powerful Women in Business in 2025: 1. Mary Barra, Chair and CEO, GM (U.S.) 2. Julie Sweet, Chair and CEO, Accenture (U.S.) 3. Jane Fraser, CEO, Citigroup (U.S.) 4. Lisa Su, Chair and CEO, AMD (U.S.) 5. Ana Botín, Executive Chairman, Banco Santander (Spain) 6. Tan Su Shan, Deputy CEO and Group Head of Institutional Banking, DBS Group (Singapore) 7. Thasunda Brown Duckett, President and CEO, TIAA (U.S.) 8. Marta Ortega, Chairperson, Inditex (Spain) 9. Abigail Johnson, Chairman and CEO, Fidelity Investments (U.S.) 10. Meng Wanzhou, Deputy Chairwoman, Rotating Chairwoman, and CFO, Huawei (China)
Mid East Info
20-05-2025
- Business
- Mid East Info
Two GCC Finance Leaders Make Fortune 2025 100 Most Powerful Women in Business List - Middle East Business News and Information
Hana Al Rostamani, Group CEO at First Abu Dhabi Bank and Shaikha Al-Bahar, Deputy Group Chief Executive Officer at National Bank of Kuwait, named among world's leading businesswomen. Announcement coincides with the inaugural Fortune Most Powerful Women International Summit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia- Fortune's first international summit in the region. NEW YORK, May 20, 2025—Two of the GCC's most influential banking executives are featured in Fortune's 2025 edition of the Most Powerful Women in Business list. The 28th edition of the list honors 100 female leaders from the global business landscape—spotlighting those who hold power now and those on the rise to even greater influence. This year's iteration features 52 women from the U.S. and 48 from other countries—8 from China; 7 each from France and the U.K.; 3 each from Germany, Singapore, and Brazil; and 2 each from Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, and Spain, and one each from Kuwait and United Arab Emirates. Hana Al Rostamani, Group CEO at First Abu Dhabi Bank, and Shaikha Al-Bahar, Deputy Group Chief Executive Officer at National Bank of Kuwait, are ranked 76th and 92nd, respectively. As the Group CEO of the UAE's largest lender – a bank with roughly $330 billion in assets – Al Rostamani is currently the only female chief executive of a publicly listed corporation in the Emirates. She serves on several boards, including the Institute of International Finance, the U.S.-U.A.E. Business Council, and Buna, the Arab Monetary Fund's cross-border payment system. Al-Bahar was named Deputy Group CEO of the National Bank of Kuwait in 2014 after joining the institution in 1977. She is chair of the National Bank of Kuwait-France and the National Bank of Kuwait-Egypt as well as a board member with National Bank of Kuwait (International), the bank's UK subsidiary. Al-Bahar is credited with launching NBK RISE, a program designed to empower women leaders and prepare them for senior leadership roles. With over $135 billion in total assets at the end of March 2025, the National Bank of Kuwait is one of the largest financial institutions in the country and one of the leading banks in the region. In fiscal 2024, the bank's net profit rose 7% year-over-year to $1.9 billion while net operating income grew 7.2% to $4.1 billion. The list, compiled by Fortune editors is based on company size and health, as well as an executive's career trajectory, influence, innovation, and efforts to make business better. More than 50 women currently lead Fortune 500 companies, yet only 20 made this year's list—a testament to how increasingly competitive the ranking has become. 'In its 28th year, this iconic list of powerful women includes almost half from outside of the U.S., reminding us that the impact of women is being seen globally,' said Alyson Shontell, Fortune Editor in Chief and Chief Content Officer. 'These are women transforming business today and preparing for a future during a time of tumult and uncertainty.' There are 16 newcomers, including Costco's chief operator and merchant Claudine Adamo (No. 43), helping millions of Americans navigate inflation by keeping prices low on essentials, and next-gen execs such as Julie Gao, CFO of ByteDance (No. 81), steering the TikTok owner's finances through its tangles with the U.S. government. The top 10 Most Powerful Women in Business 2025 are: Mary Barra, Chair and CEO, GM (U.S.) Julie Sweet, Chair and CEO, Accenture (U.S.) Jane Fraser, CEO, Citigroup (U.S.) Lisa Su, Chair and CEO, AMD (U.S.) Ana Botín, Executive Chairman, Banco Santander (Spain) Tan Su Shan, Deputy CEO and Group Head of Institutional Banking, DBS Group (Singapore) Thasunda Brown Duckett, President and CEO, TIAA (U.S.) Marta Ortega, Chairperson, Inditex (Spain) Abigail Johnson, Chairman and CEO, Fidelity Investments (U.S.) Meng Wanzhou, Deputy Chairwoman, Rotating Chairwoman, and CFO, Huawei (China) 'This definitive ranking of the women at the top of the global business world…tells us both who wields power today and who is poised to climb even higher tomorrow,' writes Emma Hinchliffe, Fortune senior writer, author of Most Powerful Women Daily newsletter, and editor of the 100 Most Powerful Women in Business list of 2025. Today's MPW 100 list debut coincides with the inaugural Fortune Most Powerful Women International Summit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia — Fortune's first international summit in the region. About Fortune: Fortune is a global multi-platform media company built on a legacy of trusted, award-winning reporting and information for those who want to make business better. Independently owned, Fortune tells the stories of the world's biggest companies and their leaders as well as a new generation of innovators who are moving business forward. Digitally and in print, Fortune measures corporate performance through rigorous benchmarks, and holds companies accountable, in regions around the world. Its iconic rankings include Fortune 500, Fortune Global 500, Most Powerful Women, and World's Most Admired Companies. Fortune builds world-class communities by convening industry thought leaders for exclusive summits and conferences, including the Fortune Global Forum and Brainstorm Tech.
Zawya
20-05-2025
- Business
- Zawya
NBK wraps up the closing activities of the second 'NBK RISE' cohort
This initiative goes hand in hand with NBK's strategy towards enhancing women leadership across all levels. The bank provides specialized programs tailored to support, develop, and enable women in leadership. 'NBK RISE' aims to make a sustainable impact in all sectors by establishing a diverse community of women leaders. NBK's is committed to providing equal opportunities as well as promoting diversity and inclusion in the workplace. 'NBK RISE' has earned prestigious recognition and received several awards. NBK is proud to be a pioneer in implementing equality in the workplace across its global locations. In a special visit to its final training session at the IE Business School in Spain, National Bank of Kuwait successfully wrapped up the closing activities of the nine-month-long Global Women Leadership Initiative 'NBK RISE' in its second cohort. 'NBK RISE' is a first-of-its-kind initiative specifically designed to empower women and increase their representation in higher leadership roles, which reflects the bank's commitment to achieving diversity, equity, and inclusion as per the highest international standards, and ultimately elevate women leadership institutionally, locally, regionally and globally. The second cohort is comprised of 25 female participants from diverse professional backgrounds, including local and international NBK employees, as well as representatives from NBK Wealth and representatives from prestigious regional companies such as Kuwait Petroleum Company, Ooredoo, Kuwait Banking Association, Abyat, Gulf Bank, Kuwait Financial Centre-Markaz, J's Bakery, and Intervest Capital Partner-New York. The program is divided into several training modules that aim to develop leadership and strategic skills, communication, and interaction, in addition to a focus on preparing participants to obtain exceptional leading roles in the future. The fourth and final module, focused on behavioral and impact skills, was held in collaboration with IE Business School in Madrid. Various essential topics were explored, such as Leading Conflict, Conflict Resolution, Leading Strategically, Megatrends and Future of Work, Effective Decision Maing, Delegation & Empowerment, and overall Wellbeing. Moreover, the participants had the ability to work with their executive coach from IE Business School, Madrid, to further develop their Capstone Projects in preparation for the presentations to Executive Management, reflecting the skills and knowledge gained throughout the program. In this cohort, not only did participants receive training for leadership skills, but they were also exposed to first-hand communication with global and diverse experiences, which contributed to enhancing overseas strategic collaboration and ultimately establishing a big network of women leaders across different sectors and locations. Joined by Mr. Emad Al-Ablani, Group Chief Human Resources Officer, the visit included a dinner banquet to honor His Excellency Mr. Ziyad Al-Anbai, the Ambassador of Kuwait to Spain along with several distinguished women leaders, with the attendance of Constantino De Zabala, the Director of Operations at IE Business School for the Middle East as well as the university leaders and Kuwaiti students. On the sidelines of the program's closing activities, exclusive discussions were conducted covering Human Resources topics, by Mr. Emad Al-Ablani and moderated by Professor Kriti Jain from IE, where they explored visions and global insights on the latest leadership and human resources strategies. These activities posed a remarkable opportunity for the participants to be directly in touch with distinct diplomatic and academic figures, further widening their overseas professional network. It should be noted that NBK is always keen on providing equal opportunities and promoting diversity and inclusion in the workplace through various strategic initiatives and specialized programs that aim to develop women leadership, further contributing to increasing the representation of women in leadership roles. In fact, increasing women's participation and providing them with decision-making opportunities are integral parts of international institutional strategies, especially as women are more involved in social contexts, which contributes to establishing an environment that promotes sustainable development and a positive social impact in the long run. Therefore, the 'NBK RISE' program aims to make a sustainable impact across different sectors where alumni guide ambitious future candidates, creating a sustainable cycle that enables the program to carry on and continue to make a positive impact. Moreover, it reflects NBK's commitment to enhancing gender diversity and women empowerment. It is also noteworthy that the program, which aims to enhance gender diversity and women empowerment, has earned prestigious recognition and received several awards, including MERIT's Special Recognition for 'Developing Women Leaders' and the Bronze Award for Excellence in Diversity and Inclusion from the Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM) as part of the 2023 MENA Awards. NBK prides itself in following equality principles throughout its international locations, where women already occupy 43.2% of its workforce and females occupy 29.7% of national higher management roles and above. Moreover, NBK is proud that it does not implement a gender wage gap. NBK RISE is a testament to NBK Group's continuous efforts to be a global leader in corporate community advancement. In collaboration with the most prominent universities and training providers around the world, NBK is keen on providing specialized programs and workshops that aim to develop women leadership, raise awareness about gender inequality, and utilize them to increase productivity and innovation. Moreover, NBK is committed to expanding the range of diversity and inclusion to include customers, as it launched several services and products especially for female customers and entrepreneurs. NBK is committed to instilling the principle of women empowerment in the Group's professional culture by providing mentorship, continuous career development opportunities, and adopting innovative strategic insights in the field of human resources, in line with the bank's future aspirations and goals.
Kuwait Times
19-05-2025
- Business
- Kuwait Times
NBK wraps up closing activities of the second ‘NBK RISE' cohort
KUWAIT: In a special visit to its final training session at the IE Business School in Spain, National Bank of Kuwait successfully wrapped up the closing activities of the nine-month-long Global Women Leadership Initiative 'NBK RISE' in its second cohort. 'NBK RISE' is a first-of-its-kind initiative specifically designed to empower women and increase their representation in higher leadership roles, which reflects the bank's commitment to achieving diversity, equity, and inclusion as per the highest international standards, and ultimately elevate women leadership institutionally, locally, regionally and globally. The second cohort is comprised of 25 female participants from diverse professional backgrounds, including local and international NBK employees, as well as representatives from NBK Wealth and representatives from prestigious regional companies such as Kuwait Petroleum Company, Ooredoo, Kuwait Banking Association, Abyat, Gulf Bank, Kuwait Financial Centre-Markaz, J's Bakery, and Intervest Capital Partner-New York. The program is divided into several training modules that aim to develop leadership and strategic skills, communication, and interaction, in addition to a focus on preparing participants to obtain exceptional leading roles in the future. The fourth and final module, focused on behavioral and impact skills, was held in collaboration with IE Business School in Madrid. Various essential topics were explored, such as Leading Conflict, Conflict Resolution, Leading Strategically, Megatrends and Future of Work, Effective Decision Maing, Delegation & Empowerment, and overall Wellbeing. Emad Al-Ablani is pictured during a discussion session at IE University. Trainees of the NBK RISE program (From left) Emad Ablani, Lee Newman, Dean of IE University Madrid and Anmar Darmi take a group photo. Moreover, the participants had the ability to work with their executive coach from IE Business School, Madrid, to further develop their Capstone Projects in preparation for the presentations to Executive Management, reflecting the skills and knowledge gained throughout the program. In this cohort, not only did participants receive training for leadership skills, but they were also exposed to first-hand communication with global and diverse experiences, which contributed to enhancing overseas strategic collaboration and ultimately establishing a big network of women leaders across different sectors and locations. Joined by Emad Al-Ablani, Group Chief Human Resources Officer, the visit included a dinner banquet to honor Ziyad Al-Anbai, the Ambassador of Kuwait to Spain along with several distinguished women leaders, with the attendance of Constantino De Zabala, the Director of Operations at IE Business School for the Middle East as well as the university leaders and Kuwaiti students. On the sidelines of the program's closing activities, exclusive discussions were conducted covering Human Resources topics, by Emad Al-Ablani and moderated by Professor Kriti Jain from IE, where they explored visions and global insights on the latest leadership and human resources strategies. These activities posed a remarkable opportunity for the participants to be directly in touch with distinct diplomatic and academic figures, further widening their overseas professional network. It should be noted that NBK is always keen on providing equal opportunities and promoting diversity and inclusion in the workplace through various strategic initiatives and specialized programs that aim to develop women leadership, further contributing to increasing the representation of women in leadership roles. In fact, increasing women's participation and providing them with decision-making opportunities are integral parts of international institutional strategies, especially as women are more involved in social contexts, which contributes to establishing an environment that promotes sustainable development and a positive social impact in the long run. Therefore, the 'NBK RISE' program aims to make a sustainable impact across different sectors where alumni guide ambitious future candidates, creating a sustainable cycle that enables the program to carry on and continue to make a positive impact. Moreover, it reflects NBK's commitment to enhancing gender diversity and women empowerment. It is also noteworthy that the program, which aims to enhance gender diversity and women empowerment, has earned prestigious recognition and received several awards, including MERIT's Special Recognition for 'Developing Women Leaders' and the Bronze Award for Excellence in Diversity and Inclusion from the Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM) as part of the 2023 MENA Awards. NBK prides itself in following equality principles throughout its international locations, where women already occupy 43.2 percent of its workforce and females occupy 29.7 percent of national higher management roles and above. Moreover, NBK is proud that it does not implement a gender wage gap. NBK RISE is a testament to NBK Group's continuous efforts to be a global leader in corporate community advancement. In collaboration with the most prominent universities and training providers around the world, NBK is keen on providing specialized programs and workshops that aim to develop women leadership, raise awareness about gender inequality, and utilize them to increase productivity and innovation. Moreover, NBK is committed to expanding the range of diversity and inclusion to include customers, as it launched several services and products especially for female customers and entrepreneurs. NBK is committed to instilling the principle of women empowerment in the Group's professional culture by providing mentorship, continuous career development opportunities, and adopting innovative strategic insights in the field of human resources, in line with the bank's future aspirations and goals.
