We sit at the intersection of two of the fastest-growing regions in the world. The marrying of capital, as well as knowledge and innovation, will be a theme for decades to comeJafar Amin, Chief Executive Officer, Hong Kong and Greater China, QNB Group
- About This Video
- Transcript
Global trade and investment flows are being reshaped by geopolitical uncertainty, changing regulations, and technological disruption. Amid these shifts, economic ties between China and the Middle East are deepening, creating new opportunities for cross-border investment, innovation, and regional growth.
In this episode of INFocus, Jafar Amin, Chief Executive Officer for Hong Kong and Greater China at QNB Group, joins Jasper Yip, partner at Oliver Wyman, to discuss the evolving economic relationship between China and the Middle East. Jafar shares his perspectives on the changing dynamics of global capital flows, China's expanding role in the region, and emerging opportunities in energy transition, advanced manufacturing, technology, and life sciences.
Their conversation also explores how banks are moving beyond traditional financing to help businesses navigate unfamiliar markets. Jafar shares how QNB Group supports businesses through local market expertise, cross-border financing, and strategic relationships, helping them navigate complex regulatory environments and establish a stronger presence across the Middle East, North Africa, and Türkiye.
INFocus Series
INFocus provides exclusive insights and trends from experts and leaders across the Asia Pacific region, exploring the forces, opportunities, and challenges shaping its future.
Jasper Yip
Welcome to INFocus. Today, we’re delighted to have Jafar Amin, the CEO for Hong Kong and Greater China for QNB Group. QNB Group is a financial institution that leads the connectivity between the Middle East and Asia.
Jafar, you have personally witnessed and experienced a lot across the continent. In today’s session, we would love to get your views to unpack a little bit on what the opportunities [of this connectivity] are and, more specifically, what role China should be taking in this corridor.
Jafar Amin
Jasper, thank you for having me.
Jasper
Why don’t we get started with the megatrends? A lot of things are happening, from changing interest rates to a challenging and evolving geopolitical landscape to the disruption from AI.
Jafar, what and how do you think these dynamics are shaping and affecting the capital flows? What does it really mean for you as a bank?
Jafar
We are seeing a fundamental realignment of global capital and trade flows. Now, contrary to claims of de-globalization, the amount of cross-border flows and capital that we’re seeing continues to increase. However, there is a far greater focus on resilience and diversification of supply chains, counterparties, as well as multi-jurisdictional diversification.
With just these fast-moving changes, tariffs every other day, and the conflict in the Middle East, the banks have a really important role to play in terms of being able to provide advice and guidance to clients, and insights about how to navigate complex trade corridors and think about the long-term investment decisions that clients are having to make.
Jasper
Why don’t we bring the discussion a little bit closer to the corridor – how would you characterize the opportunities between the corridor of the Middle East and Asia? Any sectors we should be watching?
Jafar
Three areas stand out for that. First is energy transition. Whilst the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) obviously produces the largest supply of oil and gas globally, they’re extremely focused on the energy transition and investing heavily in renewable energy, hydrogen, and EV (electric vehicle) ecosystems. That’s a very significant opportunity because, again, Chinese and Asian companies in particular have very significant capabilities in that.
The second is advanced manufacturing, industrials, technology, and life sciences. Again, Gulf economies are looking for diversification away from energy for their economies. There is the Saudi 2030 vision and Qatar’s 2030 vision. Chinese companies are also establishing manufacturing bases in countries like the GCC across multiple sectors. It’s not just renewables. It’s a heavy industry. It’s biotechnology. It’s transportation. It’s logistics. For example, Midea has one of the largest manufacturing sites in Egypt. Lenovo has just opened its second-largest manufacturing site in Saudi Arabia. This is all part of not just establishing hubs in these countries to serve the local interest, but also a gateway into important regions and markets like Africa, Central Asia, and Europe, taking advantage of trade agreements, geographic proximity, and the incentives and the central location that the Middle East has in the world.
And the third, I would say, is capital. Historically, a lot of Middle Eastern investment and capital has been predominantly focused on the West. We believe, of course, that it will continue. However, what we are seeing is a thoughtful rebalancing. Reallocation of capital towards innovation ecosystems, where Asia has been playing a very important role.
Jasper
This is a very helpful picture of understanding the opportunities. Often when we talk about Asia, we think of it as a “one size fits all,” but it’s not. How do you see China and its role in this particular transition?
Jafar
Historically, China has been involved in the Middle East region with projects associated with infrastructure, and the Belt and Road Initiative was a key driver of that. But today, that relationship is much more strategic.
China is a country where you have high levels of innovation. The Middle East is looking to China for the leadership that they’re showing in various industries and its ability to deliver solutions at pace, execute extremely well within tight schedules, but also at a price point, frankly, that is extremely competitive.
SOEs (state-owned enterprises) in China have been the dominant players in terms of some of the projects and infrastructure. Today, what we see is the number of POEs (privately owned enterprises) that are growing and expanding, not just exporting into the MENAT (Middle East, North Africa, and Türkiye) market, but setting up manufacturing hubs and setting up JVs (joint ventures), and looking at the MENAT market as an opportunity not only to serve the large populations that are there in Egypt, Türkiye, and Saudi Arabia, but using that region as a gateway into Africa, Central Asia, and Europe. It is a fundamental change and a huge opportunity.
What has amazed me as I’ve traveled in China is the number of world-class companies that exist, which are extremely innovative, producing products, services, and capabilities that countries in the MENAT region absolutely want and need. Some of these POEs know how to go global, but others need much more help and support because they’ve been predominantly domestic. So that, to me, is the most exciting opportunity that I’ve seen over the last 18 months.
Jasper
There are a lot of growth opportunities for them, and for you as well as a bank. Linking back to what you said earlier: they’re not just looking for banking services; they’re looking for a partner to navigate the complexity.
Jafar
When Chinese or Asian companies are looking to move into the Middle East region, or any market, frankly, they look for: one, market access. Two, local knowledge. And third, they look to banks to provide seamless banking solutions that work across borders. As we think about those three things, we need to, as a bank, step back and really think hard about the client strategy. As they think about some of these markets, what are the considerations that they need to think about? There are local cultural issues, political considerations, the type of JV partner they should work with, and what their reputation is. What are the regulatory issues and tax issues that you might need to consider? That’s where I think, apart from just the banking services and financing, we are playing a much more important role.
The reason we can do that is that we have local teams on the ground, not just in markets where most banks are, like the UAE (United Arab Emirates) and Saudi Arabia, but in markets like Iraq, Syria, Tunisia and Algeria. To give you an example, we recently helped a global renewable energy company enter the Turkish market. Türkiye is a very large country but a very complex market, given the volatility of its currency and various regulatory and local business challenges.
Fortunately for us, our subsidiary in Türkiye is one of the largest domestic banks, offering a full range of products and services. So, not only did we help connect with our Türkiye franchise and also QNB Leasing in Türkiye to support the financing needs of this global client, but the local market insights and the advice and guidance that the company received on how to do business in Türkiye and be successful were among the key factors in terms of the value that they felt that they were receiving from us.
Jasper
It’s largely about the footprint, which QNB, as a group, brings together in a unique way. Just building on what we said – growth is such an important topic in our recent global CEO Agenda report. Growth was basically cited as the number one priority for CEOs. What’s your long-term strategy? What’s the strategic pillar?
Jafar
For QNB, Asia, and Greater China in particular, are a huge focus for our growth in the coming years. Our strategy is actually very simple. We’re focused on three priorities to be the MENAT bank of choice for clients in Asia.
The first is that we are very focused on leveraging the global network of QNB. What that means is that we want to have a single relationship point of contact for our clients in this region, as clients think about their business strategies and expand overseas. We want to make sure our teams here are focused on that advice and on the service proposition that is consistent across the QNB network. I always say to our teams that our strength is not just what we’re doing here in Hong Kong and at our office in Shanghai, but also the strength of our network and our capabilities in our home markets, as well as across Southeast Asia and Europe.
The second is deepening relationships. One of the greatest things about the experience I’ve had so far here at QNB is that from a senior management perspective, we are very focused on relationships, not transactions. That means having a much better engagement model with clients early on, where we understand the client’s strategy, but better still, we’re actually helping inform their strategies and providing them the advice as they’re considering how to evolve their strategies and thinking about new markets.
Jasper
Shaping the business together with them.
Jafar
Exactly. And the third is leveraging the strength of QNB’s capital and credit profile. We are very fortunate to be backed by the state of Qatar. We have one of the highest ratings and have a very strong capital credit profile. This means that, for the most complex, largest transactions out there on a cross-border basis, we have the ability to support these transactions and support clients. And we want to do more of that in a lead role. We’ve already demonstrated that we can do that. In 2025, we served as an MLABU (mandated lead arranger, bookrunner, and underwriter) for MTR Corporation’s seven-year HK$30 billion syndicated green loan. That was leveraging a longstanding relationship. And we are absolutely focused on doing more of that going forward.
Jasper
We talked a lot about the macro. We talked about QNB as a platform. Let’s talk a little bit about yourself, Jafar. Obviously, you have abundant experience with multinational banks. What are some of the lessons that you took away from your previous life?
Jafar
I think I’ve been fortunate to have lived and worked across multiple regions in this world. I grew up in Asia. I was born in Bangladesh, but I moved to the Middle East at an early stage. I lived in Egypt for 10 years and Dubai for four years and went to university in Canada, but I’ve also worked in London, in the Middle East and in Hong Kong.
It’s my tenth year this time around in Hong Kong and my third stint. I’m deeply connected to these two regions, and I also bring the perspective of having worked in two major financial centers like London and Hong Kong. I bring a bit of realism and balance to the thought process. I think that’s a unique advantage. I look at it in three ways.
One is, we want to have a clear, focused strategy, but execution matters more. Disciplined execution. That also requires having the right team around you. A team that understands the vision, is accountable, is delivering for clients, and is sufficiently nimble to be able to adjust and execute.
Second, trust: building relationships based on trust. I would tell you that, having lived and worked in both the Middle East and Asia, one common thread between the two regions is that relationships matter and trust is really important.
Finally, sustainable growth requires balance and adaptability. We have to balance ambition with discipline, sound risk management and execution based on realism while adapting to the environment.
Jasper
That’s brilliant. Focus, trust, and discipline or adaptability — three big qualities, all very important. Before we end, let’s talk a little bit about your outlook on the market. What do you think, personally?
Jafar
We sit at the intersection of two of the world's fastest-growing regions. It’s a tremendous opportunity for us as a bank and the clients that we serve. I see that in every conversation we’ve had with clients. Everybody’s super interested in understanding more about markets that maybe they’re not as familiar with, but they’re also tremendously excited when they actually hear and learn more about the opportunities beyond what they’ve traditionally been doing. The marriage of capital, knowledge, and innovation will be a theme for decades to come. I’m really excited about it.
Jasper
That’s excellent, Jafar. Thank you so much for sharing so many invaluable insights with us. We often talk about the corridor between the Middle East and Asia, but you really helped us bring it to life. Thank you once again for joining us today.
This transcript has been edited for clarity.
- About This Video
- Transcript
Global trade and investment flows are being reshaped by geopolitical uncertainty, changing regulations, and technological disruption. Amid these shifts, economic ties between China and the Middle East are deepening, creating new opportunities for cross-border investment, innovation, and regional growth.
In this episode of INFocus, Jafar Amin, Chief Executive Officer for Hong Kong and Greater China at QNB Group, joins Jasper Yip, partner at Oliver Wyman, to discuss the evolving economic relationship between China and the Middle East. Jafar shares his perspectives on the changing dynamics of global capital flows, China's expanding role in the region, and emerging opportunities in energy transition, advanced manufacturing, technology, and life sciences.
Their conversation also explores how banks are moving beyond traditional financing to help businesses navigate unfamiliar markets. Jafar shares how QNB Group supports businesses through local market expertise, cross-border financing, and strategic relationships, helping them navigate complex regulatory environments and establish a stronger presence across the Middle East, North Africa, and Türkiye.
INFocus Series
INFocus provides exclusive insights and trends from experts and leaders across the Asia Pacific region, exploring the forces, opportunities, and challenges shaping its future.
Jasper Yip
Welcome to INFocus. Today, we’re delighted to have Jafar Amin, the CEO for Hong Kong and Greater China for QNB Group. QNB Group is a financial institution that leads the connectivity between the Middle East and Asia.
Jafar, you have personally witnessed and experienced a lot across the continent. In today’s session, we would love to get your views to unpack a little bit on what the opportunities [of this connectivity] are and, more specifically, what role China should be taking in this corridor.
Jafar Amin
Jasper, thank you for having me.
Jasper
Why don’t we get started with the megatrends? A lot of things are happening, from changing interest rates to a challenging and evolving geopolitical landscape to the disruption from AI.
Jafar, what and how do you think these dynamics are shaping and affecting the capital flows? What does it really mean for you as a bank?
Jafar
We are seeing a fundamental realignment of global capital and trade flows. Now, contrary to claims of de-globalization, the amount of cross-border flows and capital that we’re seeing continues to increase. However, there is a far greater focus on resilience and diversification of supply chains, counterparties, as well as multi-jurisdictional diversification.
With just these fast-moving changes, tariffs every other day, and the conflict in the Middle East, the banks have a really important role to play in terms of being able to provide advice and guidance to clients, and insights about how to navigate complex trade corridors and think about the long-term investment decisions that clients are having to make.
Jasper
Why don’t we bring the discussion a little bit closer to the corridor – how would you characterize the opportunities between the corridor of the Middle East and Asia? Any sectors we should be watching?
Jafar
Three areas stand out for that. First is energy transition. Whilst the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) obviously produces the largest supply of oil and gas globally, they’re extremely focused on the energy transition and investing heavily in renewable energy, hydrogen, and EV (electric vehicle) ecosystems. That’s a very significant opportunity because, again, Chinese and Asian companies in particular have very significant capabilities in that.
The second is advanced manufacturing, industrials, technology, and life sciences. Again, Gulf economies are looking for diversification away from energy for their economies. There is the Saudi 2030 vision and Qatar’s 2030 vision. Chinese companies are also establishing manufacturing bases in countries like the GCC across multiple sectors. It’s not just renewables. It’s a heavy industry. It’s biotechnology. It’s transportation. It’s logistics. For example, Midea has one of the largest manufacturing sites in Egypt. Lenovo has just opened its second-largest manufacturing site in Saudi Arabia. This is all part of not just establishing hubs in these countries to serve the local interest, but also a gateway into important regions and markets like Africa, Central Asia, and Europe, taking advantage of trade agreements, geographic proximity, and the incentives and the central location that the Middle East has in the world.
And the third, I would say, is capital. Historically, a lot of Middle Eastern investment and capital has been predominantly focused on the West. We believe, of course, that it will continue. However, what we are seeing is a thoughtful rebalancing. Reallocation of capital towards innovation ecosystems, where Asia has been playing a very important role.
Jasper
This is a very helpful picture of understanding the opportunities. Often when we talk about Asia, we think of it as a “one size fits all,” but it’s not. How do you see China and its role in this particular transition?
Jafar
Historically, China has been involved in the Middle East region with projects associated with infrastructure, and the Belt and Road Initiative was a key driver of that. But today, that relationship is much more strategic.
China is a country where you have high levels of innovation. The Middle East is looking to China for the leadership that they’re showing in various industries and its ability to deliver solutions at pace, execute extremely well within tight schedules, but also at a price point, frankly, that is extremely competitive.
SOEs (state-owned enterprises) in China have been the dominant players in terms of some of the projects and infrastructure. Today, what we see is the number of POEs (privately owned enterprises) that are growing and expanding, not just exporting into the MENAT (Middle East, North Africa, and Türkiye) market, but setting up manufacturing hubs and setting up JVs (joint ventures), and looking at the MENAT market as an opportunity not only to serve the large populations that are there in Egypt, Türkiye, and Saudi Arabia, but using that region as a gateway into Africa, Central Asia, and Europe. It is a fundamental change and a huge opportunity.
What has amazed me as I’ve traveled in China is the number of world-class companies that exist, which are extremely innovative, producing products, services, and capabilities that countries in the MENAT region absolutely want and need. Some of these POEs know how to go global, but others need much more help and support because they’ve been predominantly domestic. So that, to me, is the most exciting opportunity that I’ve seen over the last 18 months.
Jasper
There are a lot of growth opportunities for them, and for you as well as a bank. Linking back to what you said earlier: they’re not just looking for banking services; they’re looking for a partner to navigate the complexity.
Jafar
When Chinese or Asian companies are looking to move into the Middle East region, or any market, frankly, they look for: one, market access. Two, local knowledge. And third, they look to banks to provide seamless banking solutions that work across borders. As we think about those three things, we need to, as a bank, step back and really think hard about the client strategy. As they think about some of these markets, what are the considerations that they need to think about? There are local cultural issues, political considerations, the type of JV partner they should work with, and what their reputation is. What are the regulatory issues and tax issues that you might need to consider? That’s where I think, apart from just the banking services and financing, we are playing a much more important role.
The reason we can do that is that we have local teams on the ground, not just in markets where most banks are, like the UAE (United Arab Emirates) and Saudi Arabia, but in markets like Iraq, Syria, Tunisia and Algeria. To give you an example, we recently helped a global renewable energy company enter the Turkish market. Türkiye is a very large country but a very complex market, given the volatility of its currency and various regulatory and local business challenges.
Fortunately for us, our subsidiary in Türkiye is one of the largest domestic banks, offering a full range of products and services. So, not only did we help connect with our Türkiye franchise and also QNB Leasing in Türkiye to support the financing needs of this global client, but the local market insights and the advice and guidance that the company received on how to do business in Türkiye and be successful were among the key factors in terms of the value that they felt that they were receiving from us.
Jasper
It’s largely about the footprint, which QNB, as a group, brings together in a unique way. Just building on what we said – growth is such an important topic in our recent global CEO Agenda report. Growth was basically cited as the number one priority for CEOs. What’s your long-term strategy? What’s the strategic pillar?
Jafar
For QNB, Asia, and Greater China in particular, are a huge focus for our growth in the coming years. Our strategy is actually very simple. We’re focused on three priorities to be the MENAT bank of choice for clients in Asia.
The first is that we are very focused on leveraging the global network of QNB. What that means is that we want to have a single relationship point of contact for our clients in this region, as clients think about their business strategies and expand overseas. We want to make sure our teams here are focused on that advice and on the service proposition that is consistent across the QNB network. I always say to our teams that our strength is not just what we’re doing here in Hong Kong and at our office in Shanghai, but also the strength of our network and our capabilities in our home markets, as well as across Southeast Asia and Europe.
The second is deepening relationships. One of the greatest things about the experience I’ve had so far here at QNB is that from a senior management perspective, we are very focused on relationships, not transactions. That means having a much better engagement model with clients early on, where we understand the client’s strategy, but better still, we’re actually helping inform their strategies and providing them the advice as they’re considering how to evolve their strategies and thinking about new markets.
Jasper
Shaping the business together with them.
Jafar
Exactly. And the third is leveraging the strength of QNB’s capital and credit profile. We are very fortunate to be backed by the state of Qatar. We have one of the highest ratings and have a very strong capital credit profile. This means that, for the most complex, largest transactions out there on a cross-border basis, we have the ability to support these transactions and support clients. And we want to do more of that in a lead role. We’ve already demonstrated that we can do that. In 2025, we served as an MLABU (mandated lead arranger, bookrunner, and underwriter) for MTR Corporation’s seven-year HK$30 billion syndicated green loan. That was leveraging a longstanding relationship. And we are absolutely focused on doing more of that going forward.
Jasper
We talked a lot about the macro. We talked about QNB as a platform. Let’s talk a little bit about yourself, Jafar. Obviously, you have abundant experience with multinational banks. What are some of the lessons that you took away from your previous life?
Jafar
I think I’ve been fortunate to have lived and worked across multiple regions in this world. I grew up in Asia. I was born in Bangladesh, but I moved to the Middle East at an early stage. I lived in Egypt for 10 years and Dubai for four years and went to university in Canada, but I’ve also worked in London, in the Middle East and in Hong Kong.
It’s my tenth year this time around in Hong Kong and my third stint. I’m deeply connected to these two regions, and I also bring the perspective of having worked in two major financial centers like London and Hong Kong. I bring a bit of realism and balance to the thought process. I think that’s a unique advantage. I look at it in three ways.
One is, we want to have a clear, focused strategy, but execution matters more. Disciplined execution. That also requires having the right team around you. A team that understands the vision, is accountable, is delivering for clients, and is sufficiently nimble to be able to adjust and execute.
Second, trust: building relationships based on trust. I would tell you that, having lived and worked in both the Middle East and Asia, one common thread between the two regions is that relationships matter and trust is really important.
Finally, sustainable growth requires balance and adaptability. We have to balance ambition with discipline, sound risk management and execution based on realism while adapting to the environment.
Jasper
That’s brilliant. Focus, trust, and discipline or adaptability — three big qualities, all very important. Before we end, let’s talk a little bit about your outlook on the market. What do you think, personally?
Jafar
We sit at the intersection of two of the world's fastest-growing regions. It’s a tremendous opportunity for us as a bank and the clients that we serve. I see that in every conversation we’ve had with clients. Everybody’s super interested in understanding more about markets that maybe they’re not as familiar with, but they’re also tremendously excited when they actually hear and learn more about the opportunities beyond what they’ve traditionally been doing. The marriage of capital, knowledge, and innovation will be a theme for decades to come. I’m really excited about it.
Jasper
That’s excellent, Jafar. Thank you so much for sharing so many invaluable insights with us. We often talk about the corridor between the Middle East and Asia, but you really helped us bring it to life. Thank you once again for joining us today.
This transcript has been edited for clarity.
Global trade and investment flows are being reshaped by geopolitical uncertainty, changing regulations, and technological disruption. Amid these shifts, economic ties between China and the Middle East are deepening, creating new opportunities for cross-border investment, innovation, and regional growth.
In this episode of INFocus, Jafar Amin, Chief Executive Officer for Hong Kong and Greater China at QNB Group, joins Jasper Yip, partner at Oliver Wyman, to discuss the evolving economic relationship between China and the Middle East. Jafar shares his perspectives on the changing dynamics of global capital flows, China's expanding role in the region, and emerging opportunities in energy transition, advanced manufacturing, technology, and life sciences.
Their conversation also explores how banks are moving beyond traditional financing to help businesses navigate unfamiliar markets. Jafar shares how QNB Group supports businesses through local market expertise, cross-border financing, and strategic relationships, helping them navigate complex regulatory environments and establish a stronger presence across the Middle East, North Africa, and Türkiye.
INFocus Series
INFocus provides exclusive insights and trends from experts and leaders across the Asia Pacific region, exploring the forces, opportunities, and challenges shaping its future.
Jasper Yip
Welcome to INFocus. Today, we’re delighted to have Jafar Amin, the CEO for Hong Kong and Greater China for QNB Group. QNB Group is a financial institution that leads the connectivity between the Middle East and Asia.
Jafar, you have personally witnessed and experienced a lot across the continent. In today’s session, we would love to get your views to unpack a little bit on what the opportunities [of this connectivity] are and, more specifically, what role China should be taking in this corridor.
Jafar Amin
Jasper, thank you for having me.
Jasper
Why don’t we get started with the megatrends? A lot of things are happening, from changing interest rates to a challenging and evolving geopolitical landscape to the disruption from AI.
Jafar, what and how do you think these dynamics are shaping and affecting the capital flows? What does it really mean for you as a bank?
Jafar
We are seeing a fundamental realignment of global capital and trade flows. Now, contrary to claims of de-globalization, the amount of cross-border flows and capital that we’re seeing continues to increase. However, there is a far greater focus on resilience and diversification of supply chains, counterparties, as well as multi-jurisdictional diversification.
With just these fast-moving changes, tariffs every other day, and the conflict in the Middle East, the banks have a really important role to play in terms of being able to provide advice and guidance to clients, and insights about how to navigate complex trade corridors and think about the long-term investment decisions that clients are having to make.
Jasper
Why don’t we bring the discussion a little bit closer to the corridor – how would you characterize the opportunities between the corridor of the Middle East and Asia? Any sectors we should be watching?
Jafar
Three areas stand out for that. First is energy transition. Whilst the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) obviously produces the largest supply of oil and gas globally, they’re extremely focused on the energy transition and investing heavily in renewable energy, hydrogen, and EV (electric vehicle) ecosystems. That’s a very significant opportunity because, again, Chinese and Asian companies in particular have very significant capabilities in that.
The second is advanced manufacturing, industrials, technology, and life sciences. Again, Gulf economies are looking for diversification away from energy for their economies. There is the Saudi 2030 vision and Qatar’s 2030 vision. Chinese companies are also establishing manufacturing bases in countries like the GCC across multiple sectors. It’s not just renewables. It’s a heavy industry. It’s biotechnology. It’s transportation. It’s logistics. For example, Midea has one of the largest manufacturing sites in Egypt. Lenovo has just opened its second-largest manufacturing site in Saudi Arabia. This is all part of not just establishing hubs in these countries to serve the local interest, but also a gateway into important regions and markets like Africa, Central Asia, and Europe, taking advantage of trade agreements, geographic proximity, and the incentives and the central location that the Middle East has in the world.
And the third, I would say, is capital. Historically, a lot of Middle Eastern investment and capital has been predominantly focused on the West. We believe, of course, that it will continue. However, what we are seeing is a thoughtful rebalancing. Reallocation of capital towards innovation ecosystems, where Asia has been playing a very important role.
Jasper
This is a very helpful picture of understanding the opportunities. Often when we talk about Asia, we think of it as a “one size fits all,” but it’s not. How do you see China and its role in this particular transition?
Jafar
Historically, China has been involved in the Middle East region with projects associated with infrastructure, and the Belt and Road Initiative was a key driver of that. But today, that relationship is much more strategic.
China is a country where you have high levels of innovation. The Middle East is looking to China for the leadership that they’re showing in various industries and its ability to deliver solutions at pace, execute extremely well within tight schedules, but also at a price point, frankly, that is extremely competitive.
SOEs (state-owned enterprises) in China have been the dominant players in terms of some of the projects and infrastructure. Today, what we see is the number of POEs (privately owned enterprises) that are growing and expanding, not just exporting into the MENAT (Middle East, North Africa, and Türkiye) market, but setting up manufacturing hubs and setting up JVs (joint ventures), and looking at the MENAT market as an opportunity not only to serve the large populations that are there in Egypt, Türkiye, and Saudi Arabia, but using that region as a gateway into Africa, Central Asia, and Europe. It is a fundamental change and a huge opportunity.
What has amazed me as I’ve traveled in China is the number of world-class companies that exist, which are extremely innovative, producing products, services, and capabilities that countries in the MENAT region absolutely want and need. Some of these POEs know how to go global, but others need much more help and support because they’ve been predominantly domestic. So that, to me, is the most exciting opportunity that I’ve seen over the last 18 months.
Jasper
There are a lot of growth opportunities for them, and for you as well as a bank. Linking back to what you said earlier: they’re not just looking for banking services; they’re looking for a partner to navigate the complexity.
Jafar
When Chinese or Asian companies are looking to move into the Middle East region, or any market, frankly, they look for: one, market access. Two, local knowledge. And third, they look to banks to provide seamless banking solutions that work across borders. As we think about those three things, we need to, as a bank, step back and really think hard about the client strategy. As they think about some of these markets, what are the considerations that they need to think about? There are local cultural issues, political considerations, the type of JV partner they should work with, and what their reputation is. What are the regulatory issues and tax issues that you might need to consider? That’s where I think, apart from just the banking services and financing, we are playing a much more important role.
The reason we can do that is that we have local teams on the ground, not just in markets where most banks are, like the UAE (United Arab Emirates) and Saudi Arabia, but in markets like Iraq, Syria, Tunisia and Algeria. To give you an example, we recently helped a global renewable energy company enter the Turkish market. Türkiye is a very large country but a very complex market, given the volatility of its currency and various regulatory and local business challenges.
Fortunately for us, our subsidiary in Türkiye is one of the largest domestic banks, offering a full range of products and services. So, not only did we help connect with our Türkiye franchise and also QNB Leasing in Türkiye to support the financing needs of this global client, but the local market insights and the advice and guidance that the company received on how to do business in Türkiye and be successful were among the key factors in terms of the value that they felt that they were receiving from us.
Jasper
It’s largely about the footprint, which QNB, as a group, brings together in a unique way. Just building on what we said – growth is such an important topic in our recent global CEO Agenda report. Growth was basically cited as the number one priority for CEOs. What’s your long-term strategy? What’s the strategic pillar?
Jafar
For QNB, Asia, and Greater China in particular, are a huge focus for our growth in the coming years. Our strategy is actually very simple. We’re focused on three priorities to be the MENAT bank of choice for clients in Asia.
The first is that we are very focused on leveraging the global network of QNB. What that means is that we want to have a single relationship point of contact for our clients in this region, as clients think about their business strategies and expand overseas. We want to make sure our teams here are focused on that advice and on the service proposition that is consistent across the QNB network. I always say to our teams that our strength is not just what we’re doing here in Hong Kong and at our office in Shanghai, but also the strength of our network and our capabilities in our home markets, as well as across Southeast Asia and Europe.
The second is deepening relationships. One of the greatest things about the experience I’ve had so far here at QNB is that from a senior management perspective, we are very focused on relationships, not transactions. That means having a much better engagement model with clients early on, where we understand the client’s strategy, but better still, we’re actually helping inform their strategies and providing them the advice as they’re considering how to evolve their strategies and thinking about new markets.
Jasper
Shaping the business together with them.
Jafar
Exactly. And the third is leveraging the strength of QNB’s capital and credit profile. We are very fortunate to be backed by the state of Qatar. We have one of the highest ratings and have a very strong capital credit profile. This means that, for the most complex, largest transactions out there on a cross-border basis, we have the ability to support these transactions and support clients. And we want to do more of that in a lead role. We’ve already demonstrated that we can do that. In 2025, we served as an MLABU (mandated lead arranger, bookrunner, and underwriter) for MTR Corporation’s seven-year HK$30 billion syndicated green loan. That was leveraging a longstanding relationship. And we are absolutely focused on doing more of that going forward.
Jasper
We talked a lot about the macro. We talked about QNB as a platform. Let’s talk a little bit about yourself, Jafar. Obviously, you have abundant experience with multinational banks. What are some of the lessons that you took away from your previous life?
Jafar
I think I’ve been fortunate to have lived and worked across multiple regions in this world. I grew up in Asia. I was born in Bangladesh, but I moved to the Middle East at an early stage. I lived in Egypt for 10 years and Dubai for four years and went to university in Canada, but I’ve also worked in London, in the Middle East and in Hong Kong.
It’s my tenth year this time around in Hong Kong and my third stint. I’m deeply connected to these two regions, and I also bring the perspective of having worked in two major financial centers like London and Hong Kong. I bring a bit of realism and balance to the thought process. I think that’s a unique advantage. I look at it in three ways.
One is, we want to have a clear, focused strategy, but execution matters more. Disciplined execution. That also requires having the right team around you. A team that understands the vision, is accountable, is delivering for clients, and is sufficiently nimble to be able to adjust and execute.
Second, trust: building relationships based on trust. I would tell you that, having lived and worked in both the Middle East and Asia, one common thread between the two regions is that relationships matter and trust is really important.
Finally, sustainable growth requires balance and adaptability. We have to balance ambition with discipline, sound risk management and execution based on realism while adapting to the environment.
Jasper
That’s brilliant. Focus, trust, and discipline or adaptability — three big qualities, all very important. Before we end, let’s talk a little bit about your outlook on the market. What do you think, personally?
Jafar
We sit at the intersection of two of the world's fastest-growing regions. It’s a tremendous opportunity for us as a bank and the clients that we serve. I see that in every conversation we’ve had with clients. Everybody’s super interested in understanding more about markets that maybe they’re not as familiar with, but they’re also tremendously excited when they actually hear and learn more about the opportunities beyond what they’ve traditionally been doing. The marriage of capital, knowledge, and innovation will be a theme for decades to come. I’m really excited about it.
Jasper
That’s excellent, Jafar. Thank you so much for sharing so many invaluable insights with us. We often talk about the corridor between the Middle East and Asia, but you really helped us bring it to life. Thank you once again for joining us today.
This transcript has been edited for clarity.