Welcome to ADX. Today I have Jehanzeb Awan, Founding Partner and CEO of J. Awan & Partners, joining us via Zoom. J. Awan & Partners is a governance, compliance, risk, and finance firm operating across the GCC and beyond. Can you give us your summary of what the firm does?
Thank you for having me, Lucy. We are a problem-solving firm when it comes to regulatory issues and requirements. If a financial services institution — whether a startup or a leading global firm — requires compliance support, we provide that. Licensing support, risk management, governance — we provide all of that. We also work with sovereign wealth funds and listed entities on their governance needs. Where we particularly excel is in the licensing space, and we also provide outsourced and co-sourced compliance officers, money laundering reporting officers, finance officers, and risk managers. We have a tax team and an HR solutions team. The goal from the beginning was to build a one-stop shop for clients coming into the GCC and the wider MENA region.
What does the profile of your typical client look like?
We have three main areas. Asset managers and fund managers make up a large portion. Fintech firms are a significant chunk — we are particularly strong in payments and crypto. And in recent years we have become quite active in commercial and corporate banking as well. We have also deliberately diversified across geographies — our Saudi business covers large, mid, and small Saudi firms; our UAE business covers the UAE; Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Oman are served from our other regional offices. And we now have offices in the UK and most recently South Africa.
South Africa — is the African continent now part of the strategy?
Absolutely. We are very keen and positive on Africa as a continent. And it is impossible to cover Africa without a footprint there — just as it is very difficult to cover the Middle East without an office in the Middle East, or Asia without being on the ground. Our goal is to always be close to our clients. As we gain traction in different sectors and regions, we continue to expand and put boots on the ground.
Being close to regulators seems to be a core part of your model. Would you say that is a key competitive advantage?
Absolutely. Regardless of how much AI influences business in the future, unless and until the entire decision-making process is run by AI, relationships will always remain key — both in licensing and in regulatory engagement. If there is trust, you can manage challenges far better. If there is an element of the unknown in your interactions with regulators, you are fighting an uphill battle. We have always built our business around solid bilateral relationships with regulators. When a client comes to us, they can understand how different regulators think, how to best position their commercial operations, and what they should avoid. Every country, every region, and every regulator is different. That is where we excel.
For a new firm setting up in ADGM, what should their first step be?
The most important thing is to fully understand your use cases — the must-haves and the nice-to-haves — and then work with your advisor to understand what that means in practice from a cost, resourcing, and expectation standpoint. The UAE is a complex jurisdiction. You have ADGM, the UAE Central Bank, the Capital Markets Authority, DIFC, and VARA — multiple regulators at play. You need to understand which use case works where and how each regulator needs to be engaged. What we often see is a high-level understanding of "we want to execute this type of business" without appreciation for the nuance that ADGM and the UAE bring. That is where things become complicated when firms start the process without having done their homework.
Thank you so much, Jehanzeb. That has been absolutely fascinating. Thank you for joining us today.
Thank you for having me. I appreciate that very much.
