Ahmed Bin Sulayem

Ahmed Bin Sulayem is the Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of DMCC and has driven its growth from a start-up of 28 member companies in 2003 to the world’s leading international business district in 2025 with over 26,000 member companies from 180 countries, employing over 90,000 people.

Tasked with enhancing commodity trade flows through Dubai, DMCC has introduced to the market a number of value-added products and services under Mr Bin Sulayem’s leadership. In 2023, DMCC was named ‘Global Free Zone of the Year’ by The Financial Times fDi Magazine, for a record ninth consecutive year.

Mr Bin Sulayem oversaw the exponential growth of the DMCC Free Zone master development in Jumeirah Lakes Towers (JLT), a 200-hectare business and residential community in Dubai of over 100,000 people living and working in 87 towers. Mr Bin Sulayem also oversees the development of DMCC’s latest real estate project, the Uptown Dubai district.

Mr Bin Sulayem currently serves as the Chairman the Dubai Diamond Exchange (DDE) and the Dubai Gold & Commodities Exchange (DGCX).

The Kimberley Process officially appointed the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as the first and only Arab country to Chair the Kimberley Process (KP) in November 2015. Shortly after, the UAE Ministry of Economy officially appointed Mr Bin Sulayem as the UAE’s Chair of the KP for 2016. Mr Bin Sulayem was reappointed Chair of the KP for a historic second time in 2024, and has continued his leadership role with the position of Custodian Chair in 2025.

Richard Strub

Richard is a Partner in HFW’s Shipping team, based in Dubai. He also leads the Middle East Commodities practice.

Richard advises ship owners, charterers, P&I Clubs and underwriters in all aspects of shipping and the carriage of goods by sea. He specialises in disputes arising out of charterparties and bills of lading, as well as collisions, groundings and maritime casualties. He also regularly advises clients in relation to ship sale and ship building disputes.

Richard advises commodity traders and producers on all aspects of their business, including in particular physical sale/purchase and transportation. He assists and represents clients in dispute resolution in commodities and freight related matters specialising in energy and bulk commodities.

Richard represents clients in Court and arbitration proceedings in London, the Middle East and Singapore.

Richard also sits as an arbitrator in the Dubai International Arbitration Centre (DIAC) and is available to accept appointments.

He also regularly lectures on shipping and trade issues and was the co-author of HFW’s quarterly case law update.

Nick Braganza

Damian Honey

Graeme Gamble

Dan Perera

Shaun Leong

Luke Fittis

Christina Whitehead

Emma Johnson

Emma Johnson is a strategic Al Safety and Responsible Innovation advisor, helping boards and C-suite leaders embed trustworthy, future-ready Al across organisations and markets. She advises executives on aligning Al strategy with governance, compliance, and societal trust - ensuring innovation is matched with accountability and long-term resilience.

She brings over 25 years of cross-sector leadership spanning artificial intelligence safety, data governance, regulatory oversight, digital transformation, and enterprise risk frameworks. She has designed and led Al safety risk assessments aligned to global and regional policy regimes - including the EU AI Act - integrating enterprise risk practices and accountable deployment standards to enable organisations to unlock Al value while mitigating reputational and operational risk.

As the Host of the Al Trust Talks podcast, Emma drives global conversations with technology leaders, regulators, and innovators on Al safety, policy, ethics, and responsible adoption - shaping how decision-makers think about the future of intelligent systems.

Her advisory experience spans financial institutions, regulators, and innovation ecosystems, where she bridges the gap between emerging technology and practical implementation at enterprise scale.

Paul Abi Aad

Paul Abi Aad is a Managing Consultant in BRG’s Energy & Climate practice, based in Dubai. He has over eleven years of experience across the Gulf Cooperation Council, combining commercial operations, supply chain leadership and consulting for national oil companies and international energy clients.

Paul supports testifying experts and counsel in energy arbitration, including LNG disputes, focusing on the commercial and operational issues underlying these matters. His strategic advisory work includes an ongoing U.S. oilfield-chemicals engagement spanning market sizing and demand forecasting, value-chain and business-model analysis, customer assessment, strategic fit and potential M&A opportunities.

He has advised national oil companies on transformation agendas exceeding US$5 billion, covering governance, portfolio management, operational restructuring and commercial dispute resolution. His experience also includes designing a decommissioning and end-of-life regulatory framework for a leading national oil company, drawing on international benchmarking and alignment with strategic, operational and stakeholder requirements.

Paul holds an MSc in Chemical Engineering from the Holy Spirit University of Kaslik and an MBA from IE Business School. He is fluent in English, French and Arabic.