Sunday April 18th, 2010, 7pm. Resorts World Convention Center, Singapore. The Leadership Award Gala Dinner, the region’s highest possible award ceremony for leadership in financial services, is well on its course featuring a black-tie event and all outstanding leaders from the Asia Pacific and Middle East regions. Among the many dignitaries and luminaries in attendance, many of whom are Chairmen and CEOs of banks and also the global leaders, there can be seen the presence of individuals as notable as Sir George Mathewson, the former chairman of RBS and Mr Neel Kashkari, the former under-secretary of finance of the United States government and the head of the TARP program during the Bush administration. Then the name of the City Bank’s Managing Director and CEO Mr K Mahmood Sattar reverberates in the hall and he is called upon the stage to collect two awards: one for City Bank, Bangladesh – the winner of this year’s “The QFC-Asian Banker Strongest Bank in Bangladesh” award; and the other for himself as the recipient of “The QFC-Asian Banker Leadership Achievement Award for Bangladesh”. He walks up the stairs – with pride and satisfaction over the excellent things this bank has done and produced in last 3 years.

City Bank Chairman Mr Aziz Al Kaiser was present at the event; and he is holding the “Strongest Bank in Bangladesh” award in the above photograph while Mr Sattar is seen holding his award for “Leadership Achievement”.

To give a short background, The Asian Banker runs an important research-based Leadership Achievement Awards in the Financial Services Industry once every 3 years. The programme assesses the achievements of leaders in creating strong and sustainable financial institutions in the region. In other words, it is to assess the long term impact of the bank leadership in terms of vision, profitability and sustainability.

The research for this programme for 2010 was supported by the Qatar Financial Centre (QFC). Hence the official name of the award: “The QFC – Asian Banker Leadership Achievement Award and Strongest Banks in Asia Awards 2010.”

The Asian Banker Leadership Achievement Award is widely acknowledged in the Asia Pacific and Gulf regions today as the highest possible accolade of its kind for the individual and institutional achievements in the banking industry. Established in 2001, it is one of the most difficult and most exclusive awards for any top banker or the bank to win because of its stringent evaluation process.

The award ceremony is held in conjunction with The Asian Banker Summit, undisputedly the largest annual gathering of professionals in the financial services industry in Asia Pacific region.

The citations of the award state that the council of advisors, chaired by David Eldon, former Chairman of HSBC-Asia Pacific, recognised the pivotal role of City Bank MD & CEO K Mahmood Sattar ...

“The Strongest Banks in Asia” award came into City Bank’s way and it was collected by City Bank Chairman Mr Aziz Al Kaiser and MD & CEO Mr K Mahmood Sattar.