DR. ZAMIR IQBAL works as Lead Investment Officer in the Treasury of the World Bank in Washington, D.C. He earned his Ph.D. in International Finance from the George Washington University. He has extensive experience with capital markets, structured products, risk management, financial sector development, and financial modeling. His research interests include Islamic finance, financial engineering, structured finance and risk management. He is co-author of several books on Islamic banking and finance. He also serves as Professional Faculty at the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School where he teaches graduate level courses on investment and portfolio management and risk of financial institutions.

DR. ABBAS MIRAKHOR received his Ph.D. in Economics from Kansas State University in 1969. After teaching at various universities in the USA and in Iran he joined the staff of the Research Department of the IMF in 1984. He became an Executive Director of the IMF from 1990 until his retirement in 2008. He is the author of a number of articles and books on Islamic economics and finance. He is now the first holder of the INCEIF Chair in Islamic Finance.