Sahar Waheed appointed BML’s Deputy CEO, COO

Bank of Maldives (BML) has announced the appointment of Sahar Waheed as the bank’s Deputy CEO and Chief Operations Officer (COO).

In her capacity as Deputy CEO and COO, Sahar will be leading the banking operations, legal and corporate affairs, human resources, administration and properties as well as the procurement functions of the Bank. 

Sahar has over 18 years of experience in banking. She has held key positions at BML including Head of Strategic Planning and Change Management. Most recently, she served as the Bank’s People and Change Director.

Sahar holds a BSc. in Economics and Economic History from the London School of Economics and Political Science, as well as an LLM in Commercial Law and a Chartered Banker professional qualification from the Asian Institute of Chartered Bankers.

Sahar’s appointment comes alongside a new executive management team to align BML’s organizational structure with its long-term strategic goals.

In this regard, Nandana Senevirathne was appointed Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and Gary Laughton was appointed Chief Risk Officer (CRO). The appointments also included:

• Adly Ahmed Didi, Chief Technology Officer (CTO), overseeing the Bank's technology strategy and digital transformation.
•  Moosa Nimal, Chief Business Officer (CBO), responsible for corporate, business and personal banking.
• Rashfa Jaufar, Chief Credit Officer (CCO), leading credit risk management, recoveries and credit administration.
•  Aishath Zamra Zahir, Chief Marketing Officer (CMO), responsible for marketing, customer services, and project management.
•  Hassan Kalaam, Chief Islamic Banking Officer (CIBO), leading BML Islamic’s business and personal banking.

Commenting on the new appointments, BML’s CEO, Managing Director Mohamed Shareef said each individual brings unparalleled expertise in their respective area – adding their proven capabilities and understanding of the Maldives banking landscape will drive the bank’s vision of supporting individuals, businesses, and communities across the country.

Aishath Noordeen, who last held the post of Deputy CEO at BML, resigned from her post in October – after serving the Bank for over 42 years. Her resignation as Deputy CEO came after she resigned from the Bank’s board of directors in August amid backlash from the government after BML suspended foreign transactions for existing debit cards, as well as new debit and credit cards linked to MVR accounts.