Rehan Zulqadar

As the CEO of Burraq Partners, I bring over two decades of expertise in Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC). My passion lies in guiding businesses through complex regulatory landscapes, ensuring robust compliance frameworks, and fostering sustainable growth. At Burraq Partners, we specialize in delivering tailored advisory solutions that empower our clients to achieve operational excellence and strategic objectives.

Wathiq Management Consultancy is a consulting firm providing Business Advisory, Risk Advisory, Forensic Advisory, Technology Advisory, Financial Accounting Advisory and Transaction Advisory Services. As Managing Director, my key responsibilities include the following: a. Identifying new business opportunities and growing relationships/ accounts. b. Manage large GRC engagements with multiple clients and ensure quality and timeliness of work. Acts as the key point of contact with the client and lead/execute the projects with the assistance of team. c. Advising a couple of CEOs regarding performance improvements and corporate governance at the companies. d. Lead/perform audit risk assessments and engaging & educating all stakeholders, conducting workshops & trainings, development of risk policies and procedures (based on COSO & ISO 31000) including risk matrix & heatmap, Risk Strategies, Risk Appetite Statement, Key Risk Indicators, Risk Profiling, and development of departmental and organizational risk registers. e. Manage internal audit related services and ensure timeliness of planned audits, quality of workpapers and deliverables, coordinating with subject matter experts and practice leaders, as required. f. Lead/develop policies and procedures documents like Board/ Committee charters, Corporate Governance, Finance, Human Resources, Procurement, IT, Disaster Recovery and BCP. g. Staff management including planning/ utilization, department budget preparation/ monitoring and being part of team responsible for hiring. Work with leadership team for creating and updating various proprietary documents needed for performing the engagements. h. Self-Branding marketing and staying up to date on Industry Trends: Participate in conferences to improve networking, contribute to articles & publish on LinkedIn. Planning and conducting various webinars in the region to promote business development. Attend workshops to stay up to date with industry trends and knowledge.

VC Bank operates as a wholesale bank licensed from the Central Bank of Bahrain. The Bank’s primary asset focus was on income-yielding real estate and selective private equity; with core investment markets comprising the GCC and MENA, Turkey, USA and Europe. As Chief Risk Officer, I was the subject matter expert for “Basel Standards” within the Bank. I worked closely with several CEOs and Board members. My notable work included the following: a. ERM Activities/ Implementation which included successfully leading and establishing ERM Department at VC Bank and engaging & educating all stakeholders, conducting workshops & trainings, development of ERM Framework (based on COSO & ISO 31000) including risk matrix & heatmap, Risk Appetite Statement, Key Risk Indicators, Risk Profiling, and development of departmental and organizational risk registers. b. Risk Dashboard & Dynamic Risk Reporting implementation, as part of risk team initiative, led digitalization of risk register for dynamic risk reporting along with development of risk dashboard and monitoring & reporting of Key Risk Indicators. Preparing and presenting regular risk reports (including emerging risks and trends, KRI’s breach) to Senior Management, Risk Management Committee, and the Audit & Risk Committee. c. Conducted Trainings and workshops on awareness sessions on risk management and compliance to achieve regulatory cultural transformation. d. Insurance and Risk Financing ensuring appropriateness of coverage, deductibles, foreign risk placement, credit ratings of reinsurers and risk financing strategies. e. Crisis Management/Business Continuity Planning implementation with defined roles & responsibilities along with backup strategies. Carried out the BIA of the company operations with identification of Critical Business Functions & finalization of their RTO, MTD and Backup strategy. f. Developed Policies & Procedure/ Manuals for all departments. g. Interaction with Financial Regulator.

Ajyad Capital (previously International Investment Bank) is an investment management firm regulated by the Central Bank of Bahrain. The Company deals in private equity and real estate investments in the USA, MENA and GCC. As a Director Investment Risk, I acted as the Chairman of Risk Management Committee and responsible for: a. Assisting the Audit & Corporate Governance Committee of the Board to establish Governance Framework in line with the regulatory guidelines and the Company’s strategy; b. Conducting the risk assessments to identify, analyse and evaluate risks. Further, I recommended various mitigation strategies and worked with Insurance companies to develop an appropriate insurance plan; c. Presenting the MIS reports to various Management Committees & Board Committees. This is a comprehensive report which includes the performance of various investment, the underlying risks for the investments and recommendations to move forward; d. Reviewing new investment opportunities and providing feedback; e. Training the Board members & staff and on various topics; f. Carrying out the quarterly/ semi-annually investment reviews of the Company’s portfolio including financing facilities, real estate & private equity investments and Sukuk. Member of ALCO and FATCA Committees and Chairman of the Risk Management Committee.

Ibdar Capital (previously Ibdar Bank) is licensed by Central Bank of Bahrain as a locally incorporated Investment Business Firm. The firm deals in private equity, real estate and capital markets across the MENA and GCC region. As Manager Investment Risk, I was part of the team responsible for the merger of three entities namely Capivest, Capital Management House and Elaf Bank. I worked closely with the Chief Executive Officer and Board members (Kuwait, Qatar and Saudi) to implement the Company’s strategy and make it a successful venture.

EY Bahrain is a member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited, each of which is a separate legal entity. As an assistant manager advisory, I was responsible for a. Managing client relations; b. Advising Investment banks (GIB, UGB, GFH) on how to increase the eligible regulatory capital to improve their Capital Adequacy Ratio hence supporting the banks in their discussions with the Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) to raise Tier 2 capital; c. Assisting regional Retail banks in enhancing the governance and compliance frameworks by developing Corporate Governance guidelines and d. Provide mandatory staff trainings.

Pakistan Credit Rating Agency (PACRA) was established as a joint venture between International Finance Corporation (IFC), Fitch Ratings, and Lahore Stock Exchange. It is the first rating agency in Pakistan. As a financial analyst, my responsibilities included providing credit rating to the organizations.

PwC is the leading assurance and advisory firm in Pakistan with its three active offices covering a significant portion of industry and businesses. As a consultant through to Supervising Senior, I was responsible for planning & designing audit strategy, supervision and delegating engagement procedures while maintaining overall audit quality on complex standalone entities.