EXECUTIVE TEAM
Joost Smulders- Chief Investment Officer
Mr. Joost Smulders has over 16 years of experience in Private Equity Investments and Investment Banking, having executed dozens of transactions with a combined value of over USD 100 billion, across Europe, Middle East, and Asia, in diverse sectors including renewables, energy, infrastructure, industrials.
At Dubai Green Fund, Joost is responsible for the Investment Division. Prior to joining Dubai Green Fund, Joost was the VP of Investments for a family office headquartered in Abu Dhabi, focusing on private equity transactions and portfolio management in the Middle East and Europe.
At the start of his career, Joost was a member of UBS’ Investment Banking Division for 7 years. Initially part of the M&A team in London, later he moved to UBS’s Dubai office to focus on M&A and capital markets advisory in the Gulf.
Joost holds an MSc in International Business from Maastricht University and he is a CFA charterholder.
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Fadwa Sahly- Chief Risk Officer
Fadwa is the Chief Risk Officer of the Dubai Green Fund. She brings 17+ years of international experience.
Fadwa started her career with Deutsche Bank and Moody’s in Toronto before joining the Bermuda Monetary Authority, where she built the risk analytics function.
Fadwa was then selected as part of the international team to assist with the banking crisis in Ireland, following the collapse of banks during the International Financial Crisis. In her capacity as Head of Stress Testing with the Central Bank of Ireland, she led the loan loss forecast assessment and capital implications, and represented Irish banks within the European Banking Authority.
Her areas of expertise include: advising on structuring of investment transactions / vehicles, areas of risk culture, risk appetite and limit framework, risk/return optimization, credit / counterparty risk, ERM, stress testing frameworks and capital buffer management.
Fadwa holds a Bachelor Degree in Finance from George Mason University (Washington D.C. Area), a Master’s Degree in Econometrics from Concordia University (Montreal) and acquired her CFA charter-holder in 2003 (Toronto).
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Sandesh Potkar- Chief Financial Officer
Sandesh is the Chief Financial Officer at the Dubai Green Fund. He brings more than 19 years of banking & finance experience. Working at top tier international banks and accounting firms, Sandesh gained expertise in Financial Accounting & Controls, Auditing & Taxation, Business Planning & Analysis, Regulatory Reporting & Compliance, and Automation & System Implementation.
Prior to joining DGF, he was the Financial Controller at Samba Financial Group (UAE). Previously, Sandesh had served as the Deputy Head of Finance at Credit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank (UAE).
Sandesh also worked in Citibank’s Finance Division, KPMG’s Tax Division and Deloitte’s Audit Divison.
Sandesh is a Chartered Accountant and holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Mumbai.
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Leonard Taylor- Director of Legal
Mr. Leonard Taylor has over 12 years of experience in Corporate Law, gained from both private practice and in-house. He trained and qualified at the London office of McDermott Will & Emery UK, where he worked on domestic and international M&A, disposals, joint ventures and investments.
Prior to joining Dubai Green Fund, Leonard worked as General Counsel for a Dubai based Private Equity firm and before that, he was Senior Legal Counsel of Investment Corporation of Dubai, the principal investment arm of the Government of Dubai.
Leonard is a Solicitor of the Senior Courts of England and Wales, a Chartered member of The Chartered Governance Institute (formerly known as ICSA), CAMS certified and holds an MBA from the University of Cambridge.
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