Angus Blair, CIB Professor of Practice, Business School, American University of Cairo and Chair, Signet Institute
With a long and award-winning career in investment banking and financial services in the City of London and emerging markets, including being a Number One Institutional Investor analyst and Global Finance magazine's "Emerging Markets Superstar", Angus has covered developed and developing markets and economies.
Angus also brings expertise in starting/running businesses in London and emerging markets and has worked with and advised the boards, executive management and risk committees of major multinationals and SMEs in many jurisdictions.
He has been a market strategist at Barings and subsequently head of Mediterranean and the Middle East and North Africa at Barings and ABN AMRO, before becoming an MD in private equity (Safron) and then head of asset management/product development at Al Rajhi Bank in Saudi Arabia, and subsequently at the MENA region investment banks, Beltone (partner, corporate development & research) and COO at Pharos.
He has recently been the CIB Professor of Practice at the business school, American University of Cairo, teaching corporate finance, corporate governance, ESG, managerial finance and economics. In addition, he is a regular speaker at different corporate and diplomatic events, public and private, to discuss economics, markets and risk.
What is your favourite social media platform, and why?
Twitter: It is immediate and supplies useful proactive and reactive informed opinion to the news I want on the economy, capital markets, business and geopolitics, as well as, increasingly, the environment and climate finance.
Tell us about you and your current role or area of interest.
I have been the CIB Professor of Practice at the Business School at the American University of Cairo since 2019 and preparing the move back to finance in the City in the Autumn.
I helped to list CIB (the major private sector bank in Egypt, on the London Stock Exchange in the 90s). I am honoured to fly its flag differently for several years as its Professor of Practice at AUC, but also generally as I am lucky to meet many direct and indirect investors, CEOs and Chairs of companies. As well as political representatives of many states to discuss the outlook for many developing economies, particularly the MENA region.
My passion has been finance and, more recently, corporate governance, climate finance, and the environment. Having worked in finance in developed and developing markets and having lived in the MENA region for some years, my attention has moved to ways in which official financial products and infrastructure, which has bypassed so many people, might be made to do so.
In addition, I have seen climate change/crisis effects first-hand and the increasing risks of inaction by governments, corporates and society at large. We must find more efficient ways in which the financial services sector better serves the future and do so more equitably.
What do you like about your career or area of focus?
I like intellectual questioning and looking for solutions to issues. I have been exceptionally lucky to have been recognised by institutional investors and some corporates for the work I have done and still do, travel so much, and meet so many interesting people, from presidents and monarchs to people on the shop floor of factories.
I have been privileged to have a career which has been focused on finance and banking but which has also had so much variety. More recently, as a Professor, it has been wonderful to develop and encourage young people's talent and to help them think differently, as the world needs more fluid thinkers to solve mounting problems.
There is much that I have learned from the experience of teaching, which is now added to my financial qualifications.
What is the best advice you have ever received?
Being reminded to make time to enjoy it all.
What inspires you, motivates you, or helps you to move forward?
What motivates me is that I have made a difference in certain circumstances and continue to make a difference to colleagues, students and companies to which I have given, and continue to give, advice.
I remain motivated by the work that I have done and continue to do, which is to do my best to raise corporate governance standards at all times and to focus more intently upon resolving the climate crisis as quickly as possible.
What are you proud of in your life so far?
I have played a role in helping others reach their potential - large and small - in several countries.
What is your preferred way to meet new people/network?
Through great dinner parties and small events to brainstorm on issues.
What skills or qualities do you feel have helped you?
Persistence. Being a good listener and a good questioner, and a good observer. Willingness to do very long hours to get things done.
What do you wish you had known when you started out?
Fluent in French and Arabic!
Who do you most admire in business, academic or creative circles and why?
That great idea can come out of the blue, in the oddest ways, and not always the most obvious person. I love creativity in all its forms (I have done a lot of work writing that my previous investment banks published, and more recently, creative writing). And the fact that in business, we can all be creative and that this helps others in a team to create solutions and ideas to use in other ways.
Outside of your professional/work area, what hobbies or interests do you have or what other areas of your life are of real importance to you?
In the last few years, I have really enjoyed some creative writing, including a short play and the basis of another longer play. I also love the history of cinema and have a large collection of classic films. I also bring friends and acquaintances together for lunches/dinners for great discussions.
I love gardening and planting and growing plants and trees and hope to return to that soon, something I want to do as part of my environmental goals.
Has the pandemic had a positive or a negative effect on you and/or your business, and how have you managed it?
For over a year, my work was, for the most part, online, and it was not always easy as so much of my work has revolved around being with people to get things done, and the period was not always so enjoyable, not least the solitude.
However, I managed it by organising (after a few months) limited and distanced lunches at home to allow friends the chance to meet up.
Do you have a mentor, or have you ever mentored anyone?
A former mentor at Barings was the late Michael Baring, who was a major supporter of me and my work. In addition, I have been lucky enough to mentor many people over time in different investment banks and institutions, a number of whom stayed in touch for long-term advice and professional recommendations and, more recently, with students.
What advice would you have for someone looking to get into the same area of work or interests?
Start early and read a lot about finance over time and economic history too.
What do you feel is the most common reason for people failing or giving up?
Not having someone/others to believe in them, or who have not learned enough business survival skills/lack of funding as some good people have not been able to be helped, given their backgrounds.
Is there a phrase, quote or a saying that you really like?
I say "Goodness" quite a lot. It is better than a few old Anglo-Saxon swear words.
What companies, brands, or institutions do you like or do you think are getting it right?
The City of London Corporation. Soho House. Church's shoes. Queen Elizabeth ll. LVMH. The John Lewis Partnership and Waitrose. Brooks Brothers (button-down shirts).
How do you define success, and what lessons have you learned so far that you could share with our audience/readership?
Success is being happy. It is not about money. I have learned to see the benefits of persistence, which became a habit and enabled me to get things done. Another core to building success is the willingness to read constantly to be informed and to change one's views based on evidence.