Alabbar named Emaar's managing director; new chairman announced

Emaar Properties has named Mohamed Alabbar, founder of the company and previously chairman of the board of directors, as managing director — in order to comply with the local corporate governance laws for listed companies.

According to the corporate governance requirements for listed companies in the UAE, the chairman of the company cannot have executive responsibilities. This is to maintain independence of the Chairman position, the developer said in a statement on Sunday.

“In view of the above requirement, Mr. Mohamed Alabbar will take the senior most executive position in the company as a managing director. He will continue to represent the company in all public forums,” it said.

Jamal Bin Thaniah has been named the non-executive chairman of the company in order to comply with the UAE Securities and Commodities Authority’s (SCA) regulation for listed companies.

The board also decided to elect Ahmed Jawa as vice-chairman.

In July, Emaar had abolished all job titles, including that of the chairman. Business cards were to simply state the name and department of Emaar employees.

The property developer’s shares closed 0.27 per cent up at Dh3.60 per share at the Dubai Financial Market on Sunday.

• Dubai
• Abu Dhabi