Alya Al Zarouni in

Alya Al Zarouni

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Chief Operating Officer at DIFC
📍 United Arab Emirates

Alya Al Zarouni is the Chief Operating Officer at DIFC Authority, where she directs the operational strategy for one of the worlds leading financial centers. With over two decades of experience, she is responsible for technology-driven business services, client experience, and digital transformation. She holds an MBA, an LLM in International Business Law, and a BSc in Computer Science.

Alya serves as a board member for the World Alliance of International Financial Centers and Hawkamah, The Institute for Corporate Governance, contributing to global financial standards and corporate governance.

She is a graduate of the prestigious Mohammed bin Rashid Centre for Leadership Development, completing both the Young Leaders and Dubai Leaders programs.

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Experience
22 Years
Current Role
Chief Operating Officer
Job Level
Leadership
Location
United Arab Emirates
Personality Overview

How Alya shows up

Communication Style
Decision Approach
Work Preference

Behavioral traits and communication patterns that shape how this person evaluates opportunities, builds trust, and makes decisions in professional settings.

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Priorities

Topics Alya cares about

Financial Centre Growth
Oversees operations for one of the fastest-growing global financial hubs and frequently speaks on its record-breaking company registration and asset growth.
Fintech and AI
Actively promotes innovation as a core focus of DIFC's 2030 strategy, including initiatives like the Agentic AI Challenge and the DIFC Innovation Hub.
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Career

Work history

1-2023
Chief Operating Officer
DIFC
6-2019
Board Member
Hawkamah Institute for Corporate Governance
2-2018 - 2-2023
Executive Vice President - Operations
DIFC
2-2017 - 6-2019
Senior Vice President Operations
DIFC
2-2014 - 6-2019
Head - Government and Registry Services
DIFC
In the press

Media appearances

In Conversation with Alya AlZarouni at DIFC. Featured in The Fintech Times
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Join us as Alya Al Zarouni, Chief Operating Officer at #DIFC .... Featured in Instagram
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Education
2003 - 2006
Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.)
American University of Sharjah
2019 - 2020
Master of Laws - LLM
Paris-Pantheon-Assas University
Social presence
in
Behavioral profile

DISC profile (public)

DISC behavioral profile

Dominance, influence, steadiness, and calculativeness scores with guidance on how this person prefers to communicate and decide.

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