Home lists 100 Most Powerful Arabs 2023 Khaled Mohammed Balama Governor, Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) Origin: UAE Residence: UAE Sector: Finance Since Balama was appointed CBUAE’s governor in 2021, the central bank has rolled out many initiatives to sustain the UAE’s monetary and financial stability. Recently, CBUAE announced its Central Bank Digital Currency strategy, which will help accelerate domestic and cross-border payments and the move towards a cashless society. The initiative is a part of CBUAE’s Financial Infrastructure Transformation Programme (FIT Programme) that aims to expedite digital transformation across the country’s financial services sector. Under the FIT Programme, CBUAE will adopt advanced technologies and data management solutions to improve regulatory compliance, reduce operational costs and enhance innovation and customer experience. Other initiatives spearheaded by CBUAE include the issuance of new guidance to combat money laundering and terrorism financing and the development of more robust frameworks to supervise banks’ exposure to the real estate sector.