Areije Al Shakar has 15 years of experience in banking and entrepreneurship. In her current role at Bahrain Development Bank, she is a senior vice president heading the Development Services Division. She has been involved in the development of several support services for entrepreneurs, namely her role in establishing BDB’s Rowad Program, a holistic entrepreneur support platform, and SeedFuel-Rowad, a start-up funding program. She has worked in organizations such as Investcorp, Citibank, BNP Paribas, and Lehman Brothers on the Treasury, Investment Management, and Advisory side. She holds an MS in public policy and management, from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, a Bachelor of Commerce in finance, from the John Molson School of Business, Concordia University, and is a certified business coach and mentor from the Chartered Management Institute in the United Kingdom.