Mohamed Arafa

Hold full CFO accountability for the group finance function of an ADX-listed building materials group spanning cement products, reinforcing steel,
aerated concrete, and steel industries subsidiaries, operating across a bilingual Arabic/English environment. Direct corporate finance, treasury,
capital structure, and investor relations while leading Board-level financing strategy and liquidity management. Originate, value, and execute M&A
across regional banking, logistics, and insurance sectors through investment models, valuation workbooks, and due-diligence frameworks.
Govern IFRS-compliant reporting, regulatory disclosure to ADX and the Securities & Commodities Authority (SCA), and Board / Audit Committee
engagement.
Notable Contributions/Accomplishments:
• Restored shareholder value by structuring the elimination of AED 464M in accumulated losses against the general reserve, supported by
investor-facing and regulatory communications.
• Strengthened liquidity and balance-sheet resilience by developing Board-level financing options and multi-year cashflow, treasury, and
working-capital models to meet short-term funding requirements.
• Led valuation and execution readiness for the acquisition of a 40% stake (c. AED 1.5B) in an ADX-listed bank and a cross-border logistics
target, producing investor presentations, audited FY2025 financial analysis, valuation workbooks, and management toolkits.
• Spearheaded a consortium-based capital restructuring of an ADX-listed insurance platform, contributing land and real-estate assets
alongside a co-acquirer to re-rate the capital base toward an AED 2 billion vehicle.
• Established the groups financial governance architecture by authoring a Financial Policies and Procedures Manual (FIN-PP-001) and
instituting a Board-level Procurement Committee.
• Safeguarded the group through robust corporate governance and regulatory response on contested audit and asset-disposal matters,
including bilingual legal memoranda, SCA filings, and management of c. AED 75M in active litigation exposure.

Manage the consolidation of group-wide statutory financial information and regulatory reporting for the
Group, develop statutory reporting frameworks and procedures to produce accurate, timely and
transparent submissions in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).
• Oversee the preparation, consolidation and submission of periodic financial statements and statutory
reports among wholly-owned the Fund investee companies.
• Design and implement appropriate controls to strengthen the Financial Reporting control environment and
mitigate risks.
• Consolidate the Structure Liquidity Statements to produce reliable, transparent, and high-quality assetlevel
data into group-wide financial disclosures.
• Direct and monitoring the financial, operational, and strategic performance of the business units.
• Oversee the planning, execution, and continuous improvement of the enterprise-wide corporate (i.e. UAE,
Chechnya, Belarus, Egypt, etc..) and long-range strategic planning processes.
• Assess the adequacy of and provide the appropriate direction on financial, Cash Management, Structure
Liquidity Statements, budgeting & forecast.
• Conduct routine and ad-hoc management reporting and analysis of monthly, quarterly, and annual key
performance indicators and business drivers for presentation to Executive management.
• Monitor and conduct on-site reviews of critical financial statements accounts and provide input as to the
overall control environment at the business units.
• Assess the identification of opportunities for continuous improvement of financial reporting systems,
policies, processes, and practices considering ‘international leading practice’ to improve business
processes, productivity, and operational efficiency.
• Oversee and manage the coordination and contact with external auditors to complete statutory reporting
requirements and resolve significant audit issues.
• Collaborate on and contribute towards the development and delivery of group-wide finance initiatives and
projects.
• Active member of ALCO “Assets & Liabilities Committee”.

Progressed across a 16-year tenure from Finance Manager to Group Finance Head, holding the full CFO mandate over P&L, treasury, IFRS 9 ECL,
and strategic financial planning. Developed multi-billion AED financial models (DCF, NPV, IRR) for investments and capital projects, and directed
multi-year treasury and liquidity optimisation initiatives spanning cashflow restructuring, risk hedging, and funding cost reduction. Ensured IFRS
15/16/17 compliance across construction revenue recognition and lease accounting, while managing end-to-end accounting, project accounting,
CapEx control, reconciliations, and financial statement preparation for accurate, timely reporting.
Notable
• Held owning Board audit
committee reporting.
• Improved financial efficiency by creating funding models to support payments, milestone tracking, and CapEx optimisation.
• Secured Board approval for multi-year capital and investment strategies, building DCF/NPV/IRR models that underpinned funding and
capital-allocation decisions.
• Delivered consistently clean external audits with no qualifications, embedding IFRS 9 ECL, IFRS 15/16/17, and SOX-grade controls across
the close process.
• Improved profitability by partnering with commercial teams on lease structuring, investment appraisals, and pricing decisions.
• Improved budget adherence and cost control by liaising with engineering and procurement teams on cost variance analysis.
• Oversaw finance for the Zayed Towers project, a flagship mixed-use real estate and residential complex, ensuring financial control and project
success.
• Enhanced financial decision-making and forecasting accuracy by building liquidity and FP&A models and embedding DCF-based forecasting
discipline across the organisation.

Managed a portfolio of audited clients and responded to client queries.
• Performed statutory, group reporting audits (IFRS/IPSAS) and compliance review for ADAA regulated
clients.
• Identified internal control issues for management reporting and drafted final documents for Director and
Partners review.
• Conducted internal control review for risk management and evaluation of business risks and action plans.
• Participated in many assignments in different sectors, such as Investment, Retail Contracting,
Manufacturing Real Estate, Money Markets, Banking, financial Services firms, and Governmental Sector.
• Involved in the agreed upon procedures services, reviewing and auditing financial statements covering
statement of financial position, statement of financial performance, cash flows statement, other
comprehensive income, and changes in shareholders equity… etc.
• Guided, coached, and mentored the team members, evaluated their performance, and reviewed their
work.
• Performed Forensic, SOX assignments and special Internal Audit assignments.
• Ensured compliance of the PwC methodology by conducting quality assurance reviews.

• Delivered IFRS/IPSAS audits, SOX compliance, forensic reviews, and governance frameworks for multinational clients and government
ministries across Egypt, the USA, and the UAE.
• Strengthened client trust and operational transparency by auditing major clients, including Honeywell and Star of India Ship, across
technology, banking, and industrial sectors.

• Achieved zero audit qualifications by implementing robust internal controls; maintained USD 400M+ donor-funded portfolio and ensured
adherence with international donor and IFRS standards.
• Managed full project accounting and reporting for the portfolio, delivering accurate, audit-ready financials to international donors under strict
compliance requirements.