The Banking Executive Magazine - December 2025 Issue

The Architect of Financial Integrity whom became industry leaders in their countries. “I am very proud of what they are and the difference they made in their country,” Jebeyli says. In mid-2007, Jebeyli returned to Lebanon as Group Chief Legal and Compliance Officer at Bank Audi. Over the next 14 years, he worked on transforming Audi’s governance and risk culture across its diverse ge- ographic presence — spanning Lebanon, Egypt, Turkey, Syria, Qatar, Sudan, Saudi Arabia, UAE and Eu- rope. He helped building legal and compliance teams in every market. During his tenure, Audi’s compliance staff more than doubled, reflecting heightened regulatory expectations. Yet compliance never became an ob- stacle — under Jebeyli, it became a strategic enabler. Mergers, new prod- uct launches, and cross-border deals proceeded confidently because legal risks were managed from inception. Colleagues saw him as both “the au- ditor at the table” and a trusted strategist — firm yet pragmatic. When he stepped down in 2021, re- tirement could have been the natural next step. Instead, he returned to the legal field as Chairman of Beirut Law Firm (BLF) and an Adviser to the Group at Audi on Legal and Compli- ance. Today, he advises on complex disputes, regulatory frameworks, and arbitration cases, serving as a con- sultant to banks and policymakers across the Gulf and beyond. He also serves as a Lecturer in Capital Mar- kets Law at the Lebanese Institute of Judicial Studies, offering this contri- bution as a gesture of gratitude to the institution that played a meaningful role in shaping his personality and his professional and academic path. His path — from judge to global banker to legal statesman — reflects an enduring mission: to strengthen institutions through the marriage of law and finance. REGIONAL COOPERATION AND INFLUENCE Beyond his formal roles, Jebeyli has long been a cornerstone of the Union of Arab Banks (UAB) community, quietly shaping the region’s compli- ance landscape. He assisted in estab- lishing the UAB’s Compliance Officers Committee and later served for five years as Head of the World Union of Arab Bankers’ Group of Certified Compliance Professionals. Through these roles, he fostered open dialogue among compliance leaders on critical issues ranging from anti–money laundering to global taxation, data protection, sanctions and terrorist financing. In Lebanon, he chairs the Compli- ance Committee of the Association of Banks in Lebanon (ABL) with focus on AML/CFT, convening compliance the BANKING EXECUTIVE 18 ISSUE 204 DECEMBER 2025 Compliance failures, could affect the franchise… that’s why it is essential to exercise commitment, avail support, effort, focus and resource