British expat quits Qatari finance role
STUART Pearce, a former corporate investment banker with HSBC, has stepped down as the chief executive of the Qatar Finance Authority, CityA.M. has learnt.
Pearce, who has been in the post since August 2005, will leave it shortly to become special adviser to the chairman of the Authority for a six month period.
His departure from such a key role has raised questions about Qatar’s commitment to providing a stable financial framework, local expatriate business leaders said yesterday.
The setting up of the Qatar Financial Authority, in May 2005, has helped attract the world’s largest financial institutions as the region competes with other rival centres such as Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
Shashank Srivastava becomes acting chief executive of the QFC Authority. A statement from QFC said the changes take place as part of a new strategy for the QFC Authority.
For more than four years Pearce has been part of a powerful double act alongside Phillip Thorpe, an ex-city regulator who is now head of Qatar’s main financial regulator. “The sight of the two was a reassuring presence for the English expat financial community,” one source said.