•Fundraiser for Islamic Finance Assets and Funds •Regular Keynote Speaker about FinTech, Cryptocurrencies and Blockchain as well as Islamic Finance •Member of the Advisory Board UK Islamic Finance (RedMoney Group) •Professor of Islamic Finance at IE Business School: Master of Islamic Finance •Postgraduate Harvard Kennedy School of Government (HARVARD University) •Postgraduate IESE Business School (Universidad de Navarra, SPAIN) •Bachelor Degree in Business Administration CUNEF (Universidad Complutense Madrid, SPAIN) 23 + years of experience in Private Equity, Venture Capital and Investment Banking (Islamic and Conventional) Having managed and Launched 6 Private Equity Funds in Europe (4 Private Equity Funds for SMEs) and Middle East (1 Islamic Private Equity Fund for SMEs and 1 VC Fund of Funds) Deep knowledge of Professional Standards for the Private Equity and Venture Capital Industry (ILPA, IPEV, EVCA) Taking part in the whole live cycle of a Private Equity Fund: Fundraising, Legal Structuring and Placement, Hunting, Investing, Monitoring and Exits. Working closely with Entrepreneurs, Startups and SMEs. Experience in Islamic Banking and Finance (Shari’ah Compliant) products. 2020 - to date Partner and European/MiddleEastern Market Executive (Venture Capital) at Fuel Venture Capital (Miami, Fl) with +$800Mn USD in AUM. 2018 - 2020 Fundraiser / Independent Consultant and Islamic Finance ExpertIndependent Consultant for Middle East and International Fundraiser building bridges between Middle East and rest of the world (advising in Fundraising to VC and PE Funds globally) 2017-2018Head of Private Equity Generali Investments (KD FUNDS-MANAGEMENT COMPANY, LLC) (Ljubljana, Slovenia) Launching Growth Equity Private Equity Fund for SMEs (Slovenia, Croatia and other SEE countries) targeting total commitments of a total sum (hard cap) of EUR100Mio. 2014-2017Head of Investments at BAHRAIN DEVELOPMENT BANK (Bahrain)Launching the Investment Division from scratch and raising the first Islamic Private Equity Fund (Shari’ah Compliant) for SMEs of a sum of USD130Mio and Al Waha VC Fund of Funds for a sum of USD100Mio (to be deployed in GCC Fund Managers). Managing the treasury desk and direct investment portfolio of the Bank 2005-2012Investment Director at EBN CAPITAL (Madrid, Spain)He managed three different PE Funds for a total sum of EUR120Mio and LPs such as European Investment Fund, France Telecom and Spanish Saving Banks. Targeting Buyouts, Growth and Expansion and a VC Fund for Startups and Greenfield projects 2004-2005Director of Corporate Finance and TAS at BDO (Madrid, Spain)Conducting Due Diligence, Feasibility studies, and Valuations of projects and companies backed by Private Equity Funds and Private Investors. 2001-2004Investment Director at Diana Capital (Madrid, Spain)He managed one Private Equity Fund for SMEs of a total sum of EUR70Mio. LPs such as saving banks, local banks, insurance companies and international financial institutions 1996-2001Senior Analyst M&A and Corporate Finance at CCF (HSBC) (Madrid, Spain) IPOs, Buy and Selling mandates. Other: Board member of companies in sectors such as Food (Fish and Mushroom), Manufacturing (Packaging), Financial Services, Healthcare (http://gulfdiabetes.com/board-of-directors/), and others Mentor: CH-9 Incubator (Manama, Bahrain) http://chnine.com/mentors. Flat6Labs (Beirut, Lebanon) MIT Enterprise Forum Arab Startup Competition (PAN ARAB REGION) December 2017-April 2018 (Muscat, Oman): is an avid promoter of entrepreneurship and innovation worldwide affiliated with the MIT University. I’ve been member of the Judge grading applications (Start-ups) for that edition (Muscat, Oman December 2017 - April 2018) https://www.mitarabcompetition.com/en/site/final-round-judges Speaker at World Economic Forum 2020, Davos (Swiss)Regular Keynote Speaker between 2015 and 2019 in the Gulf region (GCC) and Asia: •Middle East Investment Summit (Terrapin) Dubai 2019•Megermarket Dubai 2019•IFN Summit REDMoney Conference (Islamic Finance) 2019•AIM Abu Dhabi, UAE 2019•8th Middle East Family Office Conference. Artificial Intelligence & Based Machine Learning, Dubai, UAE 2019 https://ritossafamilyoffice.com/ •IFN World Leaders Redmoney Event: The Global Islamic Asset Management Industry: Challenges and Opportunities Going Forward. Dubai, UAE 2019 https://redmoneyevents.com/event/ifnwls19/ •FinTech Hive (DIFC), Dubai UAE 2019: FinTech, Blockchain and Cryptocurrencies into the Islamic Finance Industry. https://fintechhive.difc.ae/events-news/breakfast-buzz-10-how-fintech-will-improve-and-do-more-accessible-islamic-finance •AIM Dubai, UAE 2018•Astana International Financial Centre, for the Central Bank of Kazakhstan, for the Association of European Business in Kazakhstan, and for the Nazarbayev University School of Business. Kazakhstan (Astana and Almaty) •GPAS Istanbul 2017 (HUMANIST IN FINANCE: The Future of the Islamic Venture Capital Industry) November 2017 https://www.gpasistanbul.com/en/speakers; •4th Mediterranean Islamic Forum, sponsored by CIBAFI, Bahrain (Al Andalus Islamic Private Equity Fund for Spain and Morocco. The First Islamic Private Equity Fund Shari’ah Compliant for Spain and Morocco) November 2017 http://www.medaeconomicweek.org/speakers/;•Euromoney Conference The GCC Financial Forum (Manama, Bahrain) February 2015 http://www.euromoneyconferences.com/Video/3433508/GCC-2015-Emilio-Escartin.html