Kingdom Holding appoints new director

01/07/2010 00:00 AST

Kingdom Holding Company (KHC), a diversified conglomerate, has appointed Sarmad Zok, CEO of Dubai-based Kingdom Hotel Investments (KHI), to its board of directors and investment committee.

Zok will assume responsibility for driving the strategic development of KHC’s global hotel portfolio with immediate effect, a statement said.

KHC has recently announced the acquisition of the KHI public shares which were formerly listed on Nasdaq Dubai and the London Stock Exchange. KHI is now a private company wholly owned by KHC.

“Sarmad’s expertise will be a tremendous asset to KHC, one of the most active global hotel investors,” said Prince Alwaleed bin Talal bin Abdulaziz Alsaud, chairman of KHC.

“This appointment reflects the company’s continuing commitment to create value for our shareholders,” he added.

“I am honoured to be given the opportunity to drive the strategy and management of KHC,” said Sarmad Zok. “There are exciting opportunities to create greater synergies across KHC’s global hospitality portfolio and I look forward to driving this growth.”

Zok has been the chief executive officer of KHI since 2001 having founded KHI in the emerging markets and established its portfolio and management team.

He led the company’s $1.6 billion IPO in 2006 and is a member of KHI’s executive committee.

Zok holds a bachelor of science in hotel management from the University of Surrey, and a masters of arts in property valuation and law from City University Business School, London.

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