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Al-Jasser named central bank chief of the year for the Middle East

JEDDAH: The Banker magazine has named Muhammad Al-Jasser, governor of the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency ( SAMA ), as the Central Bank Governor of the Year, Middle East.

The Banker commended Al-Jasser for his management of the banking industry in the Kingdom, steering the Saudi economy clear of the global economic crisis.

"The SAMA 's prudent stewardship of the country's banking sector has sheltered the Kingdom from greater fallout from the credit crunch. Faced with the Algosaibi corporate scandal which threatened to engulf the whole sector, Muhammad Al-Jassser streered the agency toward a more cautious approach to banking, resulting in less exposure to US subprime debt," the magazine said in its statement after declaring the award.

The magazine pointed out that by making SAMA follow a prudent but firm stand, Al-Jasser had helped project the Kingdom's stand in the G20's debates on global economic stability.

"The governor has consequently elevated Saudi Arabias' status in discussions on global financial stability at G20 meetings and the country is now regularly consulted during meetings on financial crisis, the announcement noted.

He has also been promoting consistency and coordination between monetary, fiscal and banking policies as well as exchange rate policies to support economic growth and intensify economic and trade co-operation among the region's countries, it added.

Al-Jasser, a winner of King Abdul Aziz Medal of the First Order, was appointed head of SAMA in 2009 after having served 15 years as the SAMA board's deputy governor and vice chairman. He has also served as acting deputy minister of finance for budget and organization. In 2010, he was also named the first chairman of the Gulf Monetary Council, which is tasked with creating a central bank and common currency for the Gulf Cooperation Council.

The Saudi economist spent seven years at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), beginning in 1988 as economic adviser to the executive director and later becoming Saudi Arabia's executive director at the IMF in 1990.

He was also a member of Saudi Arabia's negotiating team for the accession of Saudi Arabia to the World Trade Organization in 2005. He served on the Technical Saudi Negotiating Team for negotiations with international oil companies, the committee of external experts to review the Quota Formulas of the IMF and the Consultative Council of the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector.

The Banker, owned by the London-based Financial Times, annually identifies top financial institutions in the world.

© Arab News 2011