The Finance Frontier 2026: Rola Abu Manneh, Chief Executive Officer, UAE, Middle East, and Pakistan, Standard Chartered

Rola Abu Manneh is the Chief Executive Officer of Standard Chartered in the UAE, Middle East, and Pakistan. She is the first Emirati woman to head an international bank in the UAE and the wider region and have successfully managed to transform the UAE business into one of the top three markets for the Standard Chartered Group.

In early 2023, Rola joined as a Director on the Boards of both Standard Chartered (Pakistan) Limited and Standard Chartered Uganda. Rola is also on the Boards of MyZoi and Appro, digital ventures through the Bank’s subsidiary, SC Ventures. In 2021, Rola became a member of the Board of Directors of Make-A-Wish Foundation UAE and the Dubai International Chamber, whose mission is to represent, support and protect the interests of the business community in Dubai.

Over the years, Rola has championed women empowerment and female entrepreneurship through different initiatives and is committed to supporting the wider community by providing university students with mentorship programmes, in collaboration with leading partners, which aim to prepare participants with the necessary skills to succeed in their chosen professions. Rola is a member of the Global Council for Sustainable Development Goal 5 – Gender Equality (‘SDG5’); a UAE delegate in G20Empower; and a member of the NYUAD Vice Chancellor’s Leadership Council.

In 2024, as a testament to her efforts, Rola was recognised as one of the Top 100 Executive Management leaders heading global corporate powerhouses in the MENA region by Forbes Middle East’s Global Meets local. She was also listed as one of the most powerful Emirati businesswomen, leading the Forbes Middle East 2024 list of the most powerful Arab businesswomen, in addition to the Top GCC Banker leaders power list by Finance ME.

Rola was also featured in the prestigious Arabian Business Power of Finance list and the ‘Top 100 Most Influential Arabs’ lists for three consecutive years. In 2023 and 2022 Rola was recognised as ‘one of the most powerful and influential ‘Women Business Leaders’ in the region as well as the top 50 most inspiring leaders by Arabian Business. In 2021, Rola was awarded Banking Leader of the Year at the Gulf Business Awards and for the past five consecutive years, she has been featured as one of the ‘Middle East’s Power Businesswomen’ by Forbes Middle East.

Rola completed her studies at the University of London – Royal Holloway and Bedford New College and holds a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics and Operational Research. She is fluent in Arabic and English and is married with two children.