Middle East Insurance CFO Summit 2026

23-24 Nov 2026, Millennium Plaza Downtown Hotel, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Theme: "Beyond the Numbers: How Middle East Insurance CFOs are Redefining Value, Resilience and Growth in an Era of Disruption"

Programme

Day One: 23 November 2026 (Monday)
8:30am
Registration & Welcome Coffee

9:00am
Chairperson’s Opening Remarks & Introduction to the Conference Theme

Keynote Address
9:15am
Navigating Tomorrow’s Challenges Today – The Future of Insurance Finance Leadership

Hammad Raza Khan
CEO (Interim) & Chief Financial Officer, Sukoon Insurance
CEO Keynote Address
9:45am
The Resilient Insurer: Balancing Growth, Risk and Technology in a New Middle East Insurance Landscape

  • Growth with resilience: How Middle East insurers can pursue profitable growth while navigating geopolitical, economic and emerging risks 

  • Technology as a strategic enabler: Moving beyond AI experimentation to leverage data and technology to strengthen underwriting, customer propositions and operational performance 

  • The CEO–CFO agenda: Aligning financial discipline, risk appetite and strategic investment to build more resilient and future-ready insurers 

Jason Light
CEO, Emirates Insurance Company
10:15am
The CFO's Guide to Investment Strategy in a Volatile Cycle: Allocation, Capital and Solvency*

Pierangelo Franzoni
Senior Partner, Origins Capital, Switzerland
10:45am
Morning Refreshments Break

Leadership Dialogue
11:15am
Leading Through Disruption: A Leadership Dialogue on Strategy, Resilience and the Future of Insurance in the Middle East

  • Discussing the biggest financial and strategic risks facing the Middle East insurance industry over the next three years, from macroeconomic headwinds and geopolitical disruption to talent scarcity, cyber exposure, and the accelerating pressure of climate-related losses, and how insurers are building organisational resilience to navigate them 
  • The human capital dimension of financial leadership: how organisations are building, developing and retaining the finance, actuarial and risk management talent that their organisations need to execute their strategies and why investing in financial leadership capability is as important as investing in capital and technology 
  • Looking ahead to 2030: what the Middle East insurance industry will look like at the end of the decade, which markets will have grown, which business models will have been disrupted, which risks will have emerged, and the financial strategies that today’s CFOs must begin building now to ensure their organisations are positioned to lead rather than follow 

Panellists:
Mohsin Altaf
Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Secretary, Trust Re
12:00pm
From Financial Strength to Strategic Growth: The CFO’s Role in Building a More Resilient Insurer

  • Strengthening the Financial Foundation: Balancing profitability, capital adequacy, liquidity and investment performance in a changing risk environment 

  • From Finance to Strategic Decision-Making: How CFOs can influence underwriting discipline, portfolio optimisation and sustainable growth 

  • Building Resilience for the Future: Using data, technology and forward-looking financial insights to navigate volatility and create long-term value 

Jean Claus
Chief Financial Officer, Emirates Insurance Company
12:30pm
The Strategic CFO: Balancing Risk, Resilience and Growth in a Changing Insurance Landscape

  • From Finance Steward to Strategic Business Partner: Navigating regulatory change, evolving customer needs and geopolitical uncertainty while supporting business resilience 

  • Putting Risk at the Heart of the CFO Agenda: Integrating ORSA, risk appetite and enterprise-wide risk oversight across underwriting, claims, reinsurance, treasury and operations 

  • Enabling Sustainable Growth: Leveraging automation and data to drive efficiency while supporting organic expansion and identifying strategic M&A and portfolio opportunities 

Zaheer Iqbal
Chief Financial Officer, Orient Takaful
1:00pm
Networking Lunch

Cross-Industry Insights
2:15pm
The AI-Ready CFO: Turning Finance Transformation into Measurable Business Value

  • Moving from traditional financial reporting to real-time, data-driven decision-making 

  • Identifying high-value AI and automation use cases and measuring their return on investment 

  • Strengthening financial controls, data governance and accountability as AI adoption accelerates 

  • Using predictive analytics and scenario planning to anticipate financial risks and improve business resilience 

  • Building future-ready finance teams with the digital skills and strategic influence needed to lead transformation 

Muhammad Anis Younus
Chief Financial Officer, Al Fadhili Housing Company, Saudi Arabia
2:45pm
Beyond Compliance to Competitive Advantage: How CFOs Can Connect Actuarial Insight, Capital Strategy and Profitable Growth

  • Turning risk insights into financial performance: How CFOs can work more closely with actuarial and underwriting teams to improve portfolio profitability and pricing discipline 

  • Capital and solvency optimisation: Using reinsurance, risk modelling and capital allocation to strengthen financial resilience while supporting sustainable growth 

  • Beyond IFRS 17 reporting: Translating financial and actuarial insights into better strategic decisions, performance measurement and forward-looking business planning 

Hatim Maskawala
Managing Director, Badri Consultancy
3:15pm
Beyond Financial Performance: How Insurance CEOs and CFOs Can Drive Profitable Growth, Digital Transformation and Resilience

  • Balancing growth with profitability: Aligning underwriting performance, cost discipline and capital allocation to deliver sustainable returns 

  • Turning technology into business value: Leveraging AI, automation and data-driven insights to strengthen risk management, operational efficiency and decision-making 

  • Building resilience for the future: Integrating governance, risk oversight and strategic agility to navigate regulatory changes and market uncertainty 

Adnan Sabaalaish
CEO, Takaful Emarat
3:45pm
Pulse of the Industry: Live Polling Session

Share your insights through our quick live polls and see how your thinking compares with your peers in the room. Designed to cut through the noise, this interactive session captures the unfiltered views of MENA’s insurance finance leaders on the key challenges, strategic priorities, and uncertainties shaping the industry today. 
Anonymous, instant, and genuinely revealing, the results will not only benchmark perspectives across the room but also help shape the conversations that matter most. 

4:00pm
Chairperson’s Closing Remarks and Networking Tea

5:00pm
End of Day One

 
*(Topic to be confirmed)

 
Note: Programme is subject to change.
Day Two: 24 November 2026 (Tuesday)
8:30am
Registration & Welcome Coffee

9:00am
Chairperson’s Opening Remarks & Introduction to the Conference Theme

Opening Keynote Address
9:15am
The Next Decade of Insurance: Rewriting the CEO–CFO Agenda for Sustainable Value Creation

As economic uncertainty, evolving customer expectations, technological disruption and changing risk landscapes reshape the insurance industry, leaders must rethink the foundations of growth. How can insurers align corporate strategy, capital allocation and risk appetite to build stronger balance sheets, unlock new market opportunities and deliver sustainable value over the next decade?

  • Redefining strategic priorities: Moving beyond premium growth to focus on profitability, capital efficiency and long-term enterprise value
  • Deploying capital for competitive advantage: Balancing investment in new markets, digital capabilities, product innovation and financial resilience
  • Building the insurer of the future: Rethinking business models, partnerships and leadership priorities to navigate disruption and capture emerging opportunities across the Middle East and wider emerging markets

Alaa El-Zoheiry
Chairman, Insurers Federation of Egypt
Managing Director, GIG Egypt
9:45am
What Does “Financial Strength” Really Mean in Today’s Insurance Market?

  • Profitability vs Growth: Can Middle East insurers grow aggressively while maintaining underwriting discipline and healthy returns? 

  • Capital Under Pressure: Navigating catastrophe risk, inflation, geopolitical uncertainty and changing reinsurance dynamics 

  • The CFO’s Strategic Scorecard: What ratings, capital strength and financial performance reveal about an insurer’s ability to compete and grow 

Vasilis Katsipis
General Manager, Market Development, AM Best
Cross–Industry Insights
10:15am
Financial Leadership in Times of Crisis

From the Global Financial Crisis and COVID-19 to regional conflicts, finance leaders have played a pivotal role in steering organisations through uncertainty. Crises demand more than financial oversight- they call for agile leadership, proactive risk management, sound decision-making and strategic resource allocation to safeguard resilience, navigate disruption, and position organisations for recovery and future growth. 

Ralph Khoury
Chief Financial Officer, WPP Media MENA
10:45am
Morning Refreshments Break

11:15am
Beyond Premium Growth: How Insurance CFOs Can Drive Profitability, Capital Efficiency and Sustainable Growth

  • Moving beyond premium growth to focus on underwriting profitability, disciplined pricing and sustainable returns 

  • Strengthening capital allocation and financial control to balance growth ambitions with solvency and resilience 

  • Using financial insights and performance metrics to improve management decisions and business performance 

  • Navigating market volatility, regulatory change and investment uncertainty while protecting the insurer’s bottom line 

Mukhtar Ahmad
Finance Director, Al Fujairah National Insurance Company (AFNIC)
11:45am
The Two-Speed CFO: Governing the Present While Designing the Future

  • Balancing Stewardship with Strategic Influence 
    How CFOs can uphold financial discipline, regulatory integrity, and stakeholder credibility while simultaneously shaping enterprise strategy as trusted advisors and constructive challengers to the business 

  • Moving from Cost Control to Capital Optimisation 
    Shifting beyond traditional budget tightening toward intentional capital allocation, scenario planning, and investment prioritisation that supports transformation, AI adoption, and sustainable growth 

  • Balancing Discipline and Ambition 
    Navigating legacy systems, regulatory constraints, and automation initiatives while architecting resilient, future-ready finance functions that enable innovation without compromising governance 

12:15pm
AI, Analytics, and the Intelligent Finance Function

  • Moving from backward-looking reporting to predictive finance  

  • AI use cases and what Insurance CFOs can learn from them 

  • Governance, controls, and ethics in AI-enabled finance  

Dr Ashish Chandra
Founder & CEO, GFF AI PTE. LTD. Singapore
12:45pm
Interactive Q&A

1:00pm
Networking Lunch

Tech Leadership Dialogue
2:15pm
The Intelligent Finance Function: How Technology Leaders Are Redefining the Future of Finance

From AI and automation to real-time data and next-generation digital infrastructure, technology is reshaping how finance functions operate across insurance, banking and other industries. 

How can CFOs and technology leaders work together to modernise finance, improve productivity, strengthen financial control and turn technology investments into measurable business value? 

3:00pm
From Cost Centre to Value Engine: How Insurance Leaders Are Transforming Operations for Growth

  • Beyond Automation: Redesigning insurance processes to deliver measurable efficiency, productivity and customer value 

  • AI, Data & Digital Transformation: Moving from technology pilots to scalable solutions that improve underwriting, claims and customer experience 

  • The CFO–Operations Partnership: Aligning investment, transformation priorities and business outcomes to deliver sustainable growth 

3:30pm
Building and Reimagining the Finance Talent Pipeline: Attracting, Developing, and Retaining Financial Leaders in the Gulf's Most Competitive Talent Market 

  • The Gulf insurance industry's chronic shortage of qualified actuarial, finance, and risk management talent has become a critical strategic vulnerability in an environment where the complexity and speed of financial decision-making have never been greater  

  • The most effective Gulf insurance CFOs are reimagining their talent strategies, moving beyond salary competition to build genuine development ecosystems, leadership cultures, and career propositions that attract and retain the calibre of financial talent their organisations need to navigate the current crisis  

  • This session delivers the talent acquisition frameworks, development programme designs, and retention strategies that are enabling the most successful Gulf insurance finance functions to build the human capital they need to lead their organisations through the most demanding operating environment in the region's insurance history  

4:00pm
Pulse of the Industry: Live Polling Session

Share your insights through our quick live polls and see how your thinking compares with your peers in the room. Designed to cut through the noise, this interactive session captures the unfiltered views of MENA’s insurance finance leaders on the key challenges, strategic priorities, and uncertainties shaping the industry today.  

Anonymous, instant, and genuinely revealing, the results will not only benchmark perspectives across the room but also help shape the conversations that matter most. 

4:15pm
Chairperson’s Closing Remarks and Networking Drinks

5:00pm
End of the Conference

 
Note: Programme is subject to change.

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