Team size: 7

What are the key projects that you have been involved in over the past 12 months?

In 2024, Property Finder completed the successful raise of $90m in debt financing. This was a complex and strategically important transaction that represented one of the largest tech-focused financial transactions in the Middle East. We are now working on refinancing the existing term loan facility, with various financing options being considered and negotiated – including private credit, bank, Nordic bond – with an emphasis on restructuring the terms to enable Property Finder to secure a financing package that is both competitive and aligned with its current scale and growth ambitions.

We completed a comprehensive review, analysis and refresh of our digital regulatory compliance program, as well as an overhaul of our data privacy program, including updating our privacy notice and cookie policy. This was an extensive exercise which included a detailed review of the key GCC, EU and UK digital law requirements (with the scope covering the EU Digital Services Act, the EU e-Commerce Directive, the UK’s Online Safety Act, as well as various EU and UK consumer protection regulations).

In addition to my legal responsibilities, I have stepped up to serve as the executive sponsor leading Property Finder’s ESG program. Following an extensive search process, we appointed a globally recognised consultant as our sustainability partner. We completed a thorough materiality assessment during H1 2025, including an ESG trends analysis relevant to Middle East tech companies. We are now crafting our ESG strategy and roadmap, which will include defining quantifiable KPIs, metrics and development targets that align with our ESG ambitions. The overall objective of the program is to establish a robust, best-in-class sustainability strategy which will ultimately create long-term value for Property Finder’s internal and external stakeholders.

What do you think are the most important attributes for a modern in-house counsel to possess?

The role of an in-house counsel, particularly a General Counsel, is growing in importance across the Middle East region. In addition to direct responsibility for legal matters, we are now tasked with taking on a greater business advisory remit by identifying and enabling opportunities for business growth. This means that we need to be equipped to dig deeper into emerging, non-traditional risks, contribute to investment objectives and shape strategic priorities. Some of the key attributes that I think define the modern in-house counsel include: a deep understanding of the company’s business model. Spend time in the business and ask lots of questions. Be curious about the details of what the organisation is striving to achieve and how it operates, and most importantly understand what the company’s risk tolerance is. This will increase your capability to influence at all levels and create impactful change.

Build trust and consensus through relationships, not only by demonstrating solid legal expertise. The best in-house counsels are sought out for their judgment and strategic insight into all sorts of decisions. And they’ve built trust by exercising a unique combination of business acumen and calmness under pressure.

See around corners and apply a growth mindset. An exceptional in-house counsel can anticipate potential issues before they escalate into a full-blown crisis by being proactive, not reactive. They’re also able to embrace legal ambiguity and unpredictability, even when this feels uncomfortable, and thoughtfully reframe these obstacles into opportunities to enable the business to achieve its objectives.

By fine-tuning these attributes, in-house counsel can transform the legal department from a cost center to a true strategic asset – and elevate their role inside their organisation.

How do you prioritise diversity and inclusion within your legal department, and what initiatives have you implemented to foster a more inclusive work environment?

The culture at Property Finder, and especially in the Legal Team, is based on respect, continuous learning and innovation. Leaning into this strong culture, I’m passionate about building a high-performance legal team that reflects our community and our shared purpose: To change living for good in the region. So, it’s massively important to me that the contributions, perspectives, and presence of all the different members of our team are seen and integrated into the collective impact that we have across our organisation.

While there is no ‘one size fits all’ approach to achieving meaningful diversity and inclusion, there are a few things that I believe you need to get right and that we have implemented in our team environment. Be as transparent as possible with each other and communicate with the team constantly (more is more). Great ideas don’t apply a hierarchy, so we openly and actively solicit input from all team members on how the legal function should operate and go about its activities and responsibilities. Guide and mentor the team on how to build their personal brand and provide them with lots of opportunities to further grow and develop through facilitating (and funding) continuing professional development and learning. And this encompasses learning that is broader than just legal topics, so we also introduced programmes to address project management, financial literacy, and data science, as well as how to leverage and optimise AI tools. Most importantly, we prioritise publicly recognising the achievements and successes of the team, individually and collectively, and we do this consistently and authentically.