Dubai banker leaves Credit Agricole for Societe Generale

Dubai-based banker Sohaib Ahmed is leaving Credit Agricole to become Middle East head of Islamic finance at rival French lender Societe Generale (SocGen), two sources familiar with the matter said.

Ahmed has worked at Credit Agricole for more than 15 years and at its Islamic banking business since April 2014, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Societe Generale confirmed the move but declined to comment further. Credit Agricole and Ahmed both declined to comment.

SocGen’s Islamic banking business offers a wider offering than Credit Agricole’s, including structured products like derivatives, swaps and hedging, one of the sources said.

In June, Ishaq Dadabhoy left Societe Generale, where he was head of Middle East Islamic finance, to join Goldman Sachs’ Dubai office as executive director of Islamic finance, according to his LinkedIn page.

Ahmed’s role at SocGen will be slightly different to Dadabhoy’s, one of the sources said. Ahmed is expected to take up his new role imminently, the source said.