Day One: Monday 30th October 2006

8.00 Registration and refreshments

9.00 Chairman’s opening remarks

Keith Mullin, Editor, IFR

9.10 Following the Money:

• Demystifying the Petrodollar Phenomenon
• The great Middle East oil bonanza: where is the new money being channelled? What are the emerging opportunities for intermediaries?
• What are the strategies and the modus operandi of the new oil rich Middle East investor? What are the new investment drivers?
• To what extent will the money be invested locally vs. internationally? Are current international investments and acquisitions by the new Middle East investor just the tip of the iceberg?
• Outlook for the oil price going forward

Brad Bourland, General Manager and Chief Economist, Samba Financial Group

Haissam Arabi, Managing Director, SHUAA Management, SHUAA Capital

Richard Watkins, Chief Executive Officer, Liability Solutions Limited

Fareed Mohamedi, Partner & Head, Country Strategies Group, PFC Energy

10.35 COFFEE BREAK

11.05 Beyond Oil: Economic Prospects and Challenges for the Region

• Is the current oil price boom detrimental to the cause of economic reform in the Middle East? Is the current easy access to capital for Middle East governments delaying privatisation and much needed structural reform?
• How successful have countries in the Middle East been in diversifying their economies from their widespread hydrocarbon dependency? To what extent is new money being invested to form the underpinnings of sustainable economic growth? To what extent is GDP growth being accompanied by parallel growth in productivity, core corporate profitability beyond trading related gains?
• Middle East risk: what is the potential for economic or political events to undermine the current economic boom and investor appetite?

Steve Brice, Head of Research, MEPA & South Asia, Global Research, Standard Chartered Bank

11.25 Taking Stock of the Middle East Opportunity: Strategic Perspectives on the Emerging Opportunities in the Region

• Given the dearth of stock market investment opportunities, what are the best opportunities to achieve Middle East exposure?

Mr Mukhtar Hussain, Co Head Global Banking, HSBC Bank plc

Hani Ramadan, Director, MENA Region, UBS Investment Bank

Middle East Capital Markets: Meeting the Rapidly Changing Needs and Aspirations of Companies in the Region

12.05 New Beginnings: Creating an Equity Culture - Opportunities for Private Equity and Venture Capital

• How is the business landscape of the Middle East changing? To what extent will government divesture and privatisation programmes offer new opportunities for the development of a vibrant and entrepreneurial private sector, as well as a gradual move away from the family-run business model? The WTO impact?
• What are the implications for the capital markets and the opportunities for private equity and venture capital? What is the potential pipeline for exits via IPO and share offerings?
• Growing the market for VC and PE investments in the region: what are the challenges? Demystifying the PE/VC asset class.
• Assessing the potential ROI for PE/VC investments in the region: which sectors offer the most potential for investment? Buyout vs. venture capital vs. late stage financing vs. private equity?

Omar Lodhi, Senior Vice President,Investments, Abraaj Capital

Firdhose Coovadia, Managing Director, Merchant Banking, The National Investor

12.45 Lunch

14.00 The Middle East Pilgrimage to the Market: Hype and Reality of the IPO Boom

• Stock market boom and bust: will the recent market fallout lead to a slow down in IPO issuance and a move to a higher level of international issuance? Will it lead to regulatory changes and expedite the move to book building vs. fixed price offerings?
• What are the expectations for the level of IPO issuance and performance going forward?
• Are we entering a new level of maturity in the stock markets of the region based on more realistic valuations underpinned by sustainable corporate performance?
• What is the longer-term outlook for the Middle East stock markets if the oil price falls?
• What is the progress toward the diversification of stocks from their current real estate and hydrocarbon bias? Which sectors offer new potential growth opportunities?

Oscar Silva, Head, Corporate & Structured Finance, The National Commercial Bank

Adam Key, Vice President, Equity Capital Markets, Citigroup

Kingsmill Bond, CFA, Emerging Markets Strategist, Deutsche Bank AG

Fadi Ghosaini, Managing Director, Head of Global Clients, Middle East ABN Amro

15.15 Refreshments

15.45 Mergers and Acquisitions - The Beginnings of a Strategic Shift: Middle East Companies Join the Hunt for Global Assets

• Assessing the drivers for regional and international expansion and expected deal flow
• Which sectors are likely to see the greatest amount of activity from companies expanding domestically, regionally and internationally?
• Which political or economic factors might undermine further expansion?
• Financing international expansion: the role and expected deal flow in loan syndication, equity, conventional and Islamic bonds
• What are the longer-term implications for the world economy/capital markets from such ‘reverse globalisation’, the rise of the ‘southern multinational’?

Cherine Chalaby, Chairman, Rasmala Investments

Mazen Darwazah, Vice Chairman and CEO MENA, Hikma Pharma Ltd.

16.30 End of Day One

Day Two: Tuesday 31st October 2006

8.30 Registration and refreshments

9.00 Chairman’s opening remarks

Keith Mullin, Editor, IFR

9.10 Improving the Climate for Middle East Capital Market Investments:

• The Regulatory Challenges
• Regional Financial Centres: Help or Hindrance to the Development of Capital Markets in the Region?

• Exploring the initiatives for overcoming the key impediments to growth of the region’s capital markets
• Risk and opportunity in the IPO boom and bust from the regulator’s perspective: what are the lessons from the recent fallout? Streamlining the IPO process
• Growing the market: stimulating the development of the bond market, growing the institutional investor base, developing the secondary markets
• The role for foreign investors in the capital markets of the region: change in prospect?
• How many stock exchanges and financial centres can the region support? To what extent is the duplication of financial centres helping or hindering the further development of the capital markets in the region?

Ewan Cameron, Managing Partner, Linklaters, Dubai

9.30 Harnessing an Innovative, Efficient and Diversified Source of Finance: The Inexorable Rise of Islamic Finance

• Exploring the new frontiers and innovations in Islamic finance and capital markets
• Creating the critical underpinnings of a dynamic Islamic capital market - the need for product standardisation. What constitutes a Shari’ah compliant product structure - a global view in prospect?
• Establishing new benchmarks in Islamic debt finance: the burgeoning sukuk market - emerging structure and innovations. Developing the market for Islamic corporate bonds
• Where are the promising new markets for Islamic Finance - e.g. China?
• What are the potential growth markets? Private equity, hedge funds and derivatives?
• Growth prospects: ensuring the competitiveness of Islamic capital markets vis-à-vis conventional financing

Ahmad Abbas, Chief Executive Officer, Liquidity Management Centre, Bahrain

John Weguelin, Managing Director, European Islamic Investment Bank (EIIB)

Iad Boustany, General Manager, BSEC - Bemo Securitisation

Stephen Austen, Managing Director, Middle East & North Africa, Standard Bank Plc, Dubai

Mohamed Al-Husseiny, Chief Financial Officer, Aabar Petroleum Investment Company PJSC

11.00 Refreshments

11.15 Channelling Middle East Liquidity to Major Project Needs in the Region: Middle East Project Finance

• Examining emerging project opportunities and MENA deal flow to 2007 and beyond: assessing the impact of rising EPC prices on the anticipated project market going forward
• Perspectives on the financing needs of State-owned companies in the region
• Exploring the evolving legal and regulatory framework for MENA capital projects
• Deal structures and financial innovations: tapping Islamic liquidity for projects in the Middle East - the role of securitisation
• How are the region’s bond markets developing to support future financing needs for major projects in the region? To what extent will the equity markets continue to support deals if the oil price falls?
• Implications of a more liberalised project market and the growth of the private sponsor

Thomas Hardy, Head of Project and Export Finance, The Royal Bank of Scotland

Opportunities in Middle East Growth Markets

11.45 Private Banking and Asset Management

• Understanding the needs and requirements of the Middle East client and the dynamics of this rapidly changing market
• Overcoming barriers to growth of private banking in the Middle East: bridging the skills gap
• What are the critical success factors/optimal operational structures for establishing a Middle East private banking operation?
• How are conditions in the region changing to enable broader participation of European/international fund participation in managing Middle East money? Changing regulatory, legal environment, and other critical infrastructure issues
• Which markets and products offer particular potential for growth?

Dr Mohammed Abdel-Haq, Managing Director, Global Head HSBC Amanah Private Banking, HSBC Private Bank

Nick Kochan, Independent Consultant on Political & Economic Risk, nickkochan.com

12.30 Real Estate

• Understanding Middle East property as an asset class
• The great Middle East property investment boom: is the market overheating?
• What is the scope for real estate fund development in the Middle East? How is the market evolving to allow greater participation of international investors in the Middle East property markets: The evolving legal and regulatory framework
• What are the next real estate property hotspots?
• ROI in Middle East property investments: short, medium and long-term prospects

Mark Morris Jones, Associate Director, CB Richard Ellis Middle East

Rakesh Patnaik, Head Real Estate Investment Funds, Global Investment House, Kuwait

13.15 Lunch followed by close of conference