Makhtar Abdullah is the Chief Executive Officer of the Association of Shariah Advisors in Islamic Finance Malaysia (ASAS) and a distinguished practitioner with more than two decades of leadership experience in Islamic finance, corporate strategy, and human capital development across Southeast Asia and the Middle East. Throughout his career, he has played a significant role in advancing Shariah advisory, Islamic banking, capital markets, and takaful through strategic leadership, consultancy, and executive education. Makhtar served as Chief Executive Officer of the Centre for Islamic Banking, Finance and Management (CIBFM), Brunei Darussalam, where he led initiatives to strengthen talent development for the country’s financial services sector and contributed to Brunei’s Islamic finance transformation agenda. He also served as Chief Operating Officer of Amanie Advisors, supporting the firm’s international expansion and providing Shariah advisory, consultancy, and training services across Asia, the Middle East, Europe, and the United States. Makhtar holds a Master’s in Islamic Banking and Finance from Universiti Islam Sultan Sharif Ali, Brunei Darussalam, a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) from the International Islamic University Malaysia, and an accountancy qualification from Universiti Teknologi MARA. His expertise spans Islamic finance, Shariah governance, leadership development, corporate transformation, and financial sector capacity building.
