logo
Teneo appoints Abdulmajeed Y. Alshamekh as a Managing Director in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Teneo appoints Abdulmajeed Y. Alshamekh as a Managing Director in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Zawya25-05-2025
Riyadh – Teneo, the global CEO advisory firm, today announced the appointment of Abdulmajeed Y. Alshamekh as a Managing Director in the firm's Riyadh office. Abdulmajeed is a seasoned investment and strategy executive with deep expertise in public-private partnerships (PPP), Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) structuring, large-scale investment transactions and government advisory across the region.
At Teneo, Abdulmajeed will work across multiple business lines, both in Saudi Arabia and the wider region. His experience will be particularly invaluable to Teneo's new Capital Projects & Infrastructure team in their PPP and private finance initiative implementation engagements. Teneo has been operating in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for over ten years and continues to accelerate the build out of its team, service offering and client base across the country.
Prior to joining Teneo, Abdulmajeed served as Investment Portfolio Director at the Saudi Ministry of Sport, where he led high-impact PPP and real estate initiatives. Earlier in his public sector career, Abdulmajeed played a key role at the Saudi Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs, leading several major PPP transactions. He has advised several central government bodies while serving as a Deputy Minister advisor at the Ministry of Economy and Planning. His committee engagements include the National Incentives Committee, the FDI Committee, the LUCID Purchase Agreement Committee and the RCRC Trade Balance Committee.
Abdulmajeed also worked in the Vision2030 Office at the Saudi Ministry of Commerce, where he supported the Minister of Commerce as an advisory board member and oversaw key PMO tasks tied to Vision 2030 initiatives. Prior to his government experience, Abdulmajeed advised on M&A transactions valued at SAR 1.4 billion with AlKhair Capital and co-managed three mutual funds on TASI as a financial analyst and assistant fund manager at Saudi Kuwaiti Finance House.
Nick McDonagh, Senior Managing Director and Teneo's regional leader in the Middle East, said: 'We are delighted to welcome Abdulmajeed to Teneo. His experience across government, investment, sports and infrastructure significantly strengthens our range of capabilities and senior team in the Kingdom. We expect Abdulmajeed to play a major role in Teneo's continued support of clients navigating one of the world's most ambitious and dynamic economic transformations.'
Matthew Wilde, Co-CEO of Teneo's Middle East Financial Advisory business, added: 'Abdulmajeed's appointment reflects our ongoing commitment to investing in talent that aligns with our clients' evolving needs. His unique leadership and market insight will be instrumental in helping clients deliver on complex mandates and achieve strategic impact under Vision 2030 and beyond.'
Abdulmajeed Alshamekh said: "I'm very excited to join Teneo and to continue to help tell Saudi Arabia's story. We have a great opportunity to grow our multi-disciplinary advisory offering on the ground in the Kingdom – from strategic and financial communications to financial advisory, investment structuring and management consulting. The calibre of Teneo's team, their culture and their unique platform means the firm is perfectly placed to accelerate the ambitions of its clients in Saudi Arabia and beyond.'
About Teneo
Teneo is the global CEO advisory firm. We partner with our clients globally to do great things for a better future.
Drawing upon our global team and expansive network of senior advisors, we provide advisory services across our five business segments on a stand-alone or fully integrated basis to help our clients solve complex business challenges. Our clients include a significant number of the Fortune 100 and FTSE 100, as well as other corporations, financial institutions and organizations.
Our full range of advisory services includes strategic communications, investor relations, financial transactions and restructuring, management consulting, physical and cyber risk, organizational design, board and executive search, geopolitics and government affairs, corporate governance and ESG.
The firm has more than 1,600 employees located in 40+ offices around the world.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

UAE Central Bank celebrates 50 Years: Industry veteran reflects on the local banking industry
UAE Central Bank celebrates 50 Years: Industry veteran reflects on the local banking industry

Khaleej Times

timea minute ago

  • Khaleej Times

UAE Central Bank celebrates 50 Years: Industry veteran reflects on the local banking industry

The year 2025 has been filled with milestones for the UAE, with the Central Bank marking over 50 years since its inception and Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB) celebrating its 50th anniversary alongside the launch of Islamic banking in the Emirates. Rizwan Ansari is a banking veteran and founder of RadiantBiz, with over 15 years of senior-level experience at Standard Chartered, Barclays, Dubai Islamic Bank, Noor Bank, ADCB, NBAD and Mashreq Bank. He began by leading SME banking at Standard Chartered and steered Barclays' SME and commercial banking through the Global Financial Crisis, where he solidified his expertise in risk management and economic resilience. Over the next decade, Rizwan embedded international best practices into the UAE market, holding leadership roles in corporate banking, trade finance, treasury, and risk management. His deep industry knowledge spans corporate account openings, transactional and trade finance solutions, FX and hedging advisory, investment guidance, and cross-border payment strategies. Drawing on this comprehensive background, Rizwan founded RadiantBiz to deliver tailored, end-to-end business consultancy—especially banking solutions—to entrepreneurs, family offices, and global investors. Rizwan explains that for new to country entrepreneurs, opening a corporate bank account in the UAE can be challenging due to stringent Global AML compliance requirements. Banks must verify the company's Ultimate Beneficial Owners (UBOs), establish the legitimacy of the client's business activities, and conduct robust due diligence on both the firm and its principals. Any gaps in documentation or perceived risk can lead to lengthy review processes—or even outright rejection—so working with an experienced advisor is crucial. Ultimately, navigating these regulations effectively not only ensures account approval but also safeguards your business's continuity and reputation. One of the top mistakes Rizwan sees among business owners—especially those coming from abroad—is misaligning their chosen banking activity with the UAE trade licence. Selecting an account that doesn't match your licensed business purpose often triggers enhanced scrutiny or outright rejection. Rizwan stresses that understanding and correctly declaring your activity up front is essential: it not only accelerates the approval process but also avoids compliance red flags around transactional legitimacy and UBO verification. RadiantBiz's expert team guides you through mapping your license activities to the right banking products, minimizing risk and ensuring a smooth onboarding. Navigating multicurrency & international accounts Given the UAE's status as a global hub, Rizwan highlights the necessity of multicurrency and international business bank accounts. Whether you need to repatriate profits, pay overseas suppliers, or collect payments from international clients, having a banking solution built for cross-border transactions is critical. RadiantBiz goes beyond simply opening accounts—our transnational advisory service supports the structuring of SPVs, international holding companies, offshore entities, and real-estate escrow arrangements, all while ensuring full compliance with Global AML, tax optimization rules, and due diligence requirements. Thanks to its strategic location, the UAE serves as a direct import/export center and a prominent re-export hub. For this sector to operate efficiently, banks' trade financing products are pivotal. Rizwan explained how banks facilitate trade by providing letters of credit, guarantees, and bills of exchange, building trust and ensuring smooth payments, especially during challenging times. But to avail these services from banks, businesses need to qualify for them—this is where RadiantBiz, as a trade finance advisory, comes in to strengthen businesses' risk management and credibility. Rizwan broke down the intricacies of investment banking, explaining how it caters to large businesses by offering IPO issuance, capital raising, and M&A advisory services. He highlighted the opportunities for UAE businesses in the global and local capital markets, citing the recent success of the Lulu and Talabat IPOs at ADGM and DFM. He also pointed out that the financial framework of the country is accommodating this banking, as the demand for private equity and sovereign wealth grows. Rizwan emphasized the importance of legal compliance, especially for cross-border transactions. He advised businesses to stay updated on UAE Central Bank rules and international AML/CFT guidelines. With new policies like corporate tax, compliance efforts must increase. As the UAE banking industry marks over 50 years, its potential keeps growing. The country leads globally with Islamic banking, fintech, and digital innovations that boost business. 'Explore your options and understand your business needs—if you're short on time, corporate bank account opening consultants in Dubai can help match you with the right solution. The right bank can make all the difference,' he concluded.

Rapid advances in AI pose opportunity and risk for startups
Rapid advances in AI pose opportunity and risk for startups

Khaleej Times

timea minute ago

  • Khaleej Times

Rapid advances in AI pose opportunity and risk for startups

Rapid advances in artificial intelligence and blockchain technology are forcing policymakers around the world to catch up. From debates over AI ethics and data privacy to new frameworks for crypto assets, the rules of the game are being written in real time. For startups, this creates both enormous opportunity and significant risk. Get it right, and you might set the global standard. Get it wrong, and you could face costly pivots or worse, regulatory dead ends. 'Sometimes compliance is a moat. Other times, it's just good hygiene. My advice: Assess your risk honestly,' Saksham Kukreja, co-founder of Bitgrit, told Khaleej Times. With years of experience building at the intersection of AI and blockchain, Kukreja has guided his company through complex global regulations and recently led Bitgrit to establish the first licensed entity for tokenizing AI assets under ADGM. Excerpts from an interview: Why has regulatory engagement been a key part of your strategy? Is it required for all startups in emerging tech? For us, regulatory engagement was never optional. Building at the intersection of AI and Web3 means facing questions about data privacy, model ownership, and public trust from day one. Customers want to know their information is safe, developers care about their IP, and token holders want real governance not just promises. That's why at Bitgrit, we chose a path that was slower but more sustainable: we set up a regulated DLT Foundation instead of launching as an unregistered protocol. It was never just about ticking boxes but about proving that there are real standards and accountability behind what we're building. That approach helped us win clients like NASA and SoftBank and attracted over 40,000 AI developers. People want to participate in ecosystems that feel legitimate and durable. But this isn't the only way. If you're building a low-risk SaaS tool or an internal product, you might not need deep regulatory engagement. But the closer your tech comes to people's data, money, or infrastructure, the more essential that engagement becomes. Sometimes compliance is a moat. Other times, it's just good hygiene. My advice: Assess your risk honestly. If the future of your company could hinge on a single policy change, build relationships with regulators early. For us, it was the difference between being a flash in the pan and building something that lasts. With technology evolving so quickly, do you think policymakers can realistically keep up with the pace of innovation in AI and Web3? Honestly, keeping up is nearly impossible. Startups move at sprint speed - we build, ship, and iterate in weeks. Policymakers are marathoners. Their job is to protect the public and keep the rules clear, so they have to pace themselves. The danger is that this inertia can sometimes push entire industries to pack up and leave for friendlier ground. I saw this up close in Bitgrit's early days, when friends in crypto moved their projects to other jurisdictions with clearer rules, sometimes overnight. But not all regulators operate the same. The best don't try to outpace innovation; instead, they set broad, flexible frameworks and invite builders into the conversation. I've had candid discussions with policymakers in several countries, and the ones making real progress are those who bring founders, engineers, even sceptics into the room and ask the tough questions early. As an example, last year Bitgrit was invited to the DLT foundation roundtable at Abu Dhabi Finance Week, where the agenda was less about defending the status quo and more about finding practical ground. That's when regulation works: when it's co-created, not imposed. The fastest path forward isn't expecting policymakers to outpace innovation, but to build open channels so industry and regulators can adapt together. That's how rules get written that actually work on both sides of the table. What has been the biggest regulatory hurdle you've faced as an AI and Web3 founder? How did you overcome it? In 2021, we launched a token out of Japan after months of legal prep, thinking we were finally ready to go global. That confidence vanished almost overnight. The tax rules were so unclear that, if we were to raise $5 million, our liability could have been calculated on the total market cap, which for us meant a tax bill approaching $500 million, on money we didn't even have. It made no practical sense. I remember one meeting where I had to use Monopoly money just to explain to a regulator the difference between 'circulating supply' and 'total supply.' But the guidance didn't change, and we realized we could lose the entire company to a rule that had nothing to do with reality. That's when I knew we had to look elsewhere. The turning point came when we joined Hub71 in Abu Dhabi. Beyond incentives to expand in the middle east, it gave us direct access to ADGM that was much more open to listen to our situation. That partnership ultimately led to Bitgrit becoming the first company in the world to get a license for tokenizing AI assets under a DLT Foundation at ADGM. We're now collaborating with ADGM and Japan's FSA, on a policy research paper to help others avoid the chaos we faced. My advice: If the rules don't make sense, don't wait around hoping they'll change for you. Cut your losses early, learn fast, and find the place where you can actually build. For founders just starting out, what are the most common misconceptions about regulation, and what advice do you wish you had received early on? One big misconception is that regulators are just there to say 'no.' In my experience, engaging early, well before launch, can actually speed things up. We started informal conversations with ADGM months before we shipped anything, and that helped us get feedback, solve issues in advance, and build trust. Good regulators aren't roadblocks; they want innovative companies, as long as you play by the rules. The other trap is underestimating how long compliance really takes. Our legal review for Bitgrit took six months, which was longer than our engineering sprint. Translating AI governance into legal language felt like explaining quantum physics in court, but it paid off. If you're doing something new, plan for it, and don't expect shortcuts. Most importantly, don't treat compliance as a chore. The requirements to add things like audit trails or stronger privacy features ended up making our platform stronger and more appealing to big clients. And never forget where you're regulated matters as much as what you're building. We moved to Abu Dhabi because the rules were clear and the ecosystem was supportive and that choice changed our trajectory. Looking ahead, what policy trends or regulatory shifts do you think will most impact the next generation of AI and Web3 founders? For AI, formal governance is arriving quickly. New laws like the EU's AI Act will require startups to prioritize risk assessments, transparency, and accountability from day one. Standards around data use, explainability, and model audits are about to become the norm. On the Web3 front, regulations are moving toward clearer definitions for digital assets and more unified rules across regions. Legislation such as Europe's MiCA is shaping global standards, and more countries are experimenting with frameworks for DAOs and tokenized assets. Another important shift is increased international cooperation, with regulators now sharing best practices and sometimes collaborating on cross-border pilot projects. For founders, this means higher expectations for transparency and ethics, but also more clarity and consistency. The next generation of startups will need to adapt quickly, stay informed, and be proactive in engaging with policymakers. Those who lean into the policy conversation will be best positioned to shape and succeed in the future landscape.

Alpha Dhabi posts 23% surge in H1 revenue; eyes long-term expansion
Alpha Dhabi posts 23% surge in H1 revenue; eyes long-term expansion

Khaleej Times

timea minute ago

  • Khaleej Times

Alpha Dhabi posts 23% surge in H1 revenue; eyes long-term expansion

Alpha Dhabi Holding, one of the fastest-growing investment holding companies in the Middle East and North Africa region, recorded revenue of Dh35.9 billion for the six-month period, up 23 per cent year-on-year. Supported by strong performances across its core verticals, the healthy results underscore the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange-listed company's ability to sustain growth through a diversified and future-focused investment portfolio. Adjusted Ebidta rose 34 per cent to Dh8.7 billion, reflecting efficiency gains and growth momentum in strategic sectors, Alpha Dhabi said in a statement. The group's financial position remains solid, with total assets of Dh198.4 billion and equity of Dh98.1 billion. Net profit stood at Dh6.6 billion, broadly in line with the same period in 2024, despite lower non-recurring accounting gains due to fluctuations in the fair market value of certain listed portfolio companies. This performance reflects Alpha Dhabi's disciplined investment approach and its ability to generate sustainable shareholder value while advancing its vision for 2030, which emphasises innovation, strategic expansion, and socio-economic impact. Revenue contributions in the first half were well spread across its portfolio: industrial activities generated Dh13.4 billion, real estate Dh12.8 billion, construction Dh6 billion, and services and other segments Dh3.7 billion. The group's strategy of building scale, creating synergies, and enabling innovation is translating into tangible results, while its increasingly global footprint is also contributing to growth, with Dh4.6 billion in revenue generated from outside the UAE by its portfolio companies. Chairman Mohamed Thani Murshed Ghannam Al Rumaithi said Alpha Dhabi remains focused on building a resilient, future-ready economy for the UAE. 'Innovation and sustainable growth remain the cornerstones of our foundation as we invest with purpose, offering investors access to a diverse range of premium assets that matter to Abu Dhabi's economy,' he said. Managing Director and Group CEO Eng. Hamad Al Ameri added that growth remains the company's top priority across revenue, acquisitions, profitability, capabilities, innovation, and market impact. 'We are well positioned to build on this momentum throughout the rest of 2025 and beyond,' he said. The group's performance is also reflected in market recognition. In the Forbes Top 100 Listed Companies in the Middle East 2025, Alpha Dhabi ranked 14th, alongside four of its portfolio companies — Aldar Properties (30th), PureHealth (44th), NMDC Group (48th) and NMDC Energy (82nd). These accolades underscore the strategic importance of Alpha Dhabi's investments in shaping the UAE's regional economic influence. The company also received the Sharjah Excellence Award 2024, while PureHealth was named the UAE's Most Valuable Healthcare Brand by Brand Finance. NMDC Energy received The ICV Excellence Award for semi-governmental manufacturers at the Make it in Emirates forum in Abu Dhabi. The group's subsidiaries have been active in expanding their market positions. Aldar Properties advanced its presence in Abu Dhabi's real estate sector with strategic acquisitions, including premium warehousing and light industrial real estate in the Al Dhafra region, and unveiled a Dh40 billion masterplan for Fahid Island, positioning it as a new landmark destination. The company also announced a partnership with Hilton to launch Abu Dhabi's first Waldorf Astoria Residences on Yas Island. In the industrial sector, Trojan General Contracting and Samsung C&T began work on a 1,000-megawatt open-cycle gas turbine power plant in Al Dhafra, supporting the UAE's energy needs and aligning with its Artificial Intelligence strategy. PureHealth expanded its insurance arm Daman into the property and casualty segment and partnered with Cincinnati Children's Hospital to bring world-class paediatric care to Abu Dhabi. NMDC Energy strengthened its Saudi market presence by extending a long-term agreement with Aramco and signed a memorandum with Al Gharbia to boost domestic pipe production capacity. Alpha Dhabi has also been active in fostering innovation in the energy sector, supporting the Enersol initiative to identify the best AI-driven energy technology start-ups, backed in partnership with Adnoc Drilling and C3 - Companies Creating Change. In hospitality, ADMO Lifestyle Holding, part of the group, expanded into high-end luxury through its partnership with Red Sea Global to launch the Nammos Resort AMAALA in Saudi Arabia and increased its stake in Lebanese fine dining brand Em Sherif. Established in 2013, Alpha Dhabi Holding has grown into a diversified investment powerhouse with more than 250 businesses across healthcare, renewable energy, petrochemicals, real estate, construction, and hospitality. Employing over 95,000 people, it is a major contributor to the UAE economy and remains committed to driving long-term value through targeted investments, innovation, and diversification.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store