EY Corporate Finance Woman award winners named in KSA and Bahrain

Bahrain Polytechnic student Fatema Alhaddad has won the inaugural EY Corporate Finance Woman of the Year award in Bahrain, while fellow graduate Yara Bugis has claimed the crown for Saudi Arabia.

Ernst & Young’s inaugural Corporate Finance Woman of the Year programme for Bahrain has uncovered its first winner: recent Bahrain Polytechnic banking and finance graduate Fatema Alhaddad. Meanwhile, the second cycle of the programme in Saudi Arabia has seen Effat University finance graduate Yara Bugis join inaugural winner Hatoun AlOtaibi on the local honours’ roll.

Established by the global Big Four firm’s transaction advisory services (TAS) division as an initiative to encourage the next generation of talented female graduates to consider a career in the field of corporate finance, the EY Corporate Finance Woman of the Year programme has since spread to 21 countries worldwide – including the UAE, Saudi Arabia and for the first time this year in Bahrain.

In addition to landing an internship with their local EY branches, Alhaddad and Bugis will now go on to compete against the other programme country winners (including from the UAE, last year represented by Ghalya AlAli) in next month’s global final in Rome – with the chance to win a month-long, all-expenses-paid EY internship taking in different TAS practice locations across the globe.

“I am honoured to be named the first EY Corporate Finance Woman of the Year for Bahrain,” said Alhaddad, who beat out five other finalists for the local title. “It was a great opportunity to learn about new areas of finance including the ways technology will change how the industry functions from EY professionals. I am also looking forward to representing Bahrain at the global competition in Rome.”

Alhaddad’s broader sentiments were echoed by Saudi winner Bugis; “This win has empowered me and given me the confidence to further explore what the world of transaction advisory services has in store for me, and the potential that a career in this field has. I also look forward to representing my country at the global competition in Rome and hope to bring home the first global win for the region.”

For the Bahraini competition, students were invited to submit an application offering their points of view on a recent business transaction in the Kingdom while further outlining how they would create a lasting legacy as a future Bahraini leader, with the finalists presenting their answers to the EY’s regional leadership and TAS professionals along with participating in workshops and individual interviews.

“This is the first year of the CFWY awards in Bahrain and I am impressed with the candidates’ positive energy and resourcefulness. It is truly encouraging to see the level of confidence these female students exhibit and their breadth of knowledge when it comes to the subjects of local and global business, economics, and technology,” said EY TAS partner and programme sponsor Rana Sanyoura.