Mohamed Alabbar

Mohamed Ali Rashed Alabbar founded Emaar Properties, the Dubai developer behind Burj Khalifa and The Dubai Mall. He was born on 8 November 1956 in Dubai, the eldest of 12 children of a dhow captain, and won a government scholarship in the 1970s to Seattle University, where he graduated in business administration in 1981. He began as a banking manager at the Central Bank of the UAE, returned to Dubai in 1992 as founding director general of the Department of Economic Development and became an economic adviser to Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum. He chaired Emaar from July 1997 until December 2020, when he stepped down to become managing director to comply with a rule barring listed-company chairmen from executive roles. He also founded the e-commerce platform Noon.com, chairs Eagle Hills, Americana and Africa Middle East Resources, and is a shareholder in the Singapore retailer RSH. Arabian Business ranked him second in its 2014 list of the 100 most powerful Arab leaders. His net worth was not stated in the sources reviewed.

• 1981 · Banking manager · Central Bank of the UAE
• 1992 · Founding Director General · Dubai Department of Economic Development
• 1997 · Founder and chairman (until December 2020) · Emaar Properties
• 2020 · Managing director · Emaar Properties
• Chairman and board member · Eagle Hills, Americana Group, Africa Middle East Resources, Tradewinds Corporation, Zand

• Business Administration degree, Seattle University (1981)
• Honorary doctorate in humanities, Seattle University (2007)

• Ranked second in Arabian Business's World's 100 Most Powerful Arabs – Leaders (2014)
• Founder of Emaar, Noon.com and RSH
• Served on Seattle University's Board of Trustees until 2016

• Emaar Properties