Ahmad Sharaf, Chairman of the Dubai Mercantile Exchange Limited (DME), has announced that the DME has welcomed John F. Sandner and Ali Tabbal to its Board of Directors.

John F. (Jack) Sandner was Chairman of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) for 13 years, making him the longest serving exchange chairman in the history of the futures industry. In January 1998, Sandner was elected Special Policy Advisor to the CME Board of Directors, a position which he held until October 2005. Mr. Sandner continues to serve on the CME Group Board of Directors and is a member of the Executive Committee of the CME Group. Under his leadership, the CME became one of the global financial services innovators, embarking on many unique initiatives to create and trade products around the globe.
Ali Tabbal is presently Chief Financial Officer of Dubai Holding, joining in 2005 from TECOM where he was the Director of Finance. Responsible for strategic, financial and treasury areas of the Group as well as ensuring compliance with corporate governance policies and objectives, Mr. Tabbal brings strong local and international financial experience to the Board of Directors.
Commenting on the appointments, Mr. Sharaf said: "As leaders in their respective fields, Ali Tabbal and Jack Sandner bring valuable industry and regional expertise to the DME's Board of Directors. We look forward to working closely with them and harnessing their insights and counsel as we work with the executive management team to drive a new phase of growth at the DME."

At the same time, Fadel Abdulbaqi Al Ali, Deputy Chairman since 2005, and Stephen Ardizzone, a Director since 2006, stepped down as members of the DME Board.

"We thank the departing members of our Board for their contributions and hard work over the years," commented Mr. Sharaf. Both were involved in the successful establishment of the DME from its inception through to its launch and have played an important role in driving the success of the Exchange, which continues to grow steadily.
"During their tenure, the DME created and launched the DME Oman Crude Oil Futures Contract, which is recognized as the third global benchmark for crude oil, and the first successful exchange-traded contract for crude oil destined for East of Suez markets. Their guidance and direction has been invaluable, and we wish them well in their next appointments and roles."
Full biographies of all Board members on the DME Board of Directors are available here.