Ali-Abbas Merali

Spear’s Review

Ali-Abbas Merali co-heads Azura’s Middle East office in Dubai with partner Mohamed Virani, whom the firm says ‘is regarded as an industry-leading expert in Islamic finance’. The office, the company says, has been thriving since opening in 2021.

Merali is a former Julius Baer banker who used to advise key clients from the Swiss bank’s emerging markets desk. He has spent 15 of his 20-year career in the UAE, having held UHNW client-facing positions at Standard Chartered Bank, HSBC Global Private Banking and Citi.

An LSE alumnus with a degree in management, he has specialised knowledge in Islamic finance and strategic investments. As a firm, Azura, which has offices across London, Monaco and Singapore, connects its UHNW clients to opportunities which include co-investments or club deals and off-market real estate investment.

Adviser Profile

Ali-Abbas Merali serves as a Partner and Co-Head of Azura Middle East, based in Dubai. 

With over 20 years of experience, Ali-Abbas has worked with the world’s top institutions, such as UBS, Citigroup, HSBC and Julius Baer. His focus at Azura is on servicing UHNW, Family Offices and Institutions across the GCC, Africa and the Sub-Continent. 

During his tenure at Julius Baer from 2014 to 2021, Ali-Abbas held the role of Head of Key Clients EMEA, leading the team managing UHNW and institutional relationships in the region. He achieved recognition as being among the top 20 global performers in the organisation. 

Ali-Abbas holds a degree from the London School of Economics and Political Science.