Rick Pudner, Chief Executive Officer of Emirates NBD, the largest banking group in the Middle East in terms of assets, received the 'Banker of the Year Award' from renowned industry magazine The Banker Middle East. Pudner received the recognition at The Banker Middle East Industry Awards ceremony which was held in Dubai.

H.E. Ahmed Humaid Al Tayer, Chairman of Emirates NBD congratulated Pudner for this recognition and said:" This recognition comes as a proof that Emirates NBD employs some of the finest talents in the banking and finance industry. Mr. Pudner has played a key role in the past year in spearheading our merger and integration process and has been achieving impressive results."

Rick Pudner joined Emirates Bank in 2006 as CEO, after a 24 year long career with HSBC in a number of senior roles. Following the landmark merger of the National Bank of Dubai and Emirates Bank International, Rick was appointed as CEO of Emirates NBD. Since then, he has been spearheading the integration of the two institutions and playing a major role in shaping the GCC Banking and Finance Industry.

Nigel Rodrigues, CEO of CPI Financial and Publisher of Banker Middle East Magazine said:" This is a well-deserved award for Rick Pudner. The unity of two major financial institutions is always a major task but this has been managed faultlessly. The fact that Rick was voted for as 'The Banker of the Year' by his peers in the industry is a sentiment of the respect in which he is held. CPI Financial is proud to present this award to Rick for all his achievements and successes'.

Now in their 8th year the Banker Middle East Industry Awards provide the benchmark for successful institutions in the MENA region. The awards ceremony was held on the 17th of June 2008 at the Emirates Towers Hotel.  The event was attended by almost 500 senior bankers from the local and regional banking and finance industry.

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Reported by: Corporate Communications
Reported on: 18.06.2008