J.P. Morgan announced today that it has appointed Sjoerd Leenart to be the Senior Country Officer of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, based in Dubai. The firm has also hired Emre Derman to be Senior Country Officer of Turkey. Both executives will report to Emilio Saracho, head of Investment Banking for Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
“These appointments represent our continued commitment to the region,” said Saracho. “We have made no secret about our expansion plans and we are confident that Sjoerd and Emre will continue to grow and maximize opportunities in those markets.”
Senior Country Officers are responsible for building and managing J.P. Morgan’s regional presence across lines of business, including the Investment Bank, Asset Management, Treasury & Securities Services and the Global Corporate Bank. They play a central role in delivering the firm’s global capabilities to local clients.
Leenart has been with J.P. Morgan for 17 years and has held numerous roles. Most recently he was co-head of Debt Capital Markets and Sales & Marketing for Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Latin America.
“It’s a privilege to take on this important and prestigious role at J.P. Morgan,” said Leenart. “We have built great momentum in the region and I look forward to building out the franchise further.”
Derman joins J.P. Morgan with a successful legal career, advising on a broad range of major corporate transactions in the Turkish market. He spent 18 years at law firm White & Case in Istanbul and London as a senior associate and partner. He managed the Istanbul office achieving record fiscal performance and growth.
“I’m excited to join J.P. Morgan, which has a long, successful track record in Turkey,” said Derman. “I’ll be able to provide local clients with the expertise, products and financial strength of J.P. Morgan’s global network behind me.”
Leenart and Derman effectively take on responsibilities that were once held by Murad Megalli, the former head of the region who died in a plane accident earlier this year. Mark Garvin, chairman of Treasury & Securities Services International, has been temporarily acting as the interim Senior Country Officer for the MENA region.
