Gustavo Carreño Appointed as CEO of Opulence Capital Management
Thursday 1 June, 2023Abu Dhabi – June 1, 2023 Opulence Capital Management (OCM), an Abu Dhabi- and Riyadh-based global financial services and investment firm, announced that its board of directors has appointed Gustavo Carreño as its CEO. Carreño joined OCM in July 2022 as its CIO. Within eight months, he was promoted to Country Head of the United Arab Emirates and Group CIO for the GCC region. Now, just three months later, his appointment to CEO marks his rapid ascent in this fast-growing firm.
As CIO of OCM, Carreño contributed to the formulation of the group's strategic plan and orchestrated the recruitment and migration of highly skilled engineers and business management professionals from its Americas-based offices to the Middle East. He also successfully led the development and implementation of a cutting-edge technology platform that fosters seamless collaboration between different sectors of the project development lifecycle, enabling OCM to adapt swiftly to dynamic business requirements and to seamlessly transition between roles, irrespective of geographic limitations.
In his new role as Group CEO, Carreño will be responsible for the global footprint and expansion of Opulence Capital Management as it continues its impact and rapid growth in the Middle East and plans new offices and personnel in SE Asia, West Africa and South America. This expansive initiative includes further acquisitions to support its financial services base in new markets and vertical integration to support large-scale, turnkey project development.
“I’m delighted to lead OCM through our next phase of rapid growth and impact,” said Carreño. “We are launching many exciting new initiatives, including several development funds in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia supporting the scope of the Vision 2030 initiative, our alliance with LWK + Partners to facilitate Chinese investment in the Middle East and most recently, the roll out and implementational support for country-level infrastructure development in the healthcare space with Nano Cures International and sovereign affiliates including 2S Holding (headed by her Highness Sheikha Salama Bint Sultan Al Nahyan), HIF, the Public Investment Fund and other country-level stakeholders in the Gulf.”
For 25 years, Carreño has successfully led operations and technology initiatives in the construction, finance, retail, and telecommunications industries. He has a history of building passionate, high-performing teams to design, develop, and implement solutions for diverse business needs.
“Gustavo’s leadership and experience in applied technology, large-scale projects and complex systems have prepared him well for his new role,” said Alexander Vanderhey, group chairman of OCM. “I know he will extend our leadership in important initiatives that support Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, the UAE’s Principles of the 50, and other far-reaching endeavors in the region.”
Before Opulence, Carreño spent 14 years as CIO of Grupo Hermosillo, a $1B USD Mexican conglomerate, and world-class design/build company founded in 1963 with the mission of “bringing our clients’ visions to life.” They have successfully completed more than 850 major building projects in Mexico for international companies spanning 11 different industries including automotive, distribution, healthcare, food/beverage and manufacturing. Carreño led numerous strategic initiatives at Hermosillo, including a bold cost reduction measure that enabled them to survive the 2008-2009 recession and the introduction of digital marketing and business intelligence systems that significantly upgraded the company’s marketing and decision-making capabilities.
A truly multi-cultural leader, Carreño has already made an impact utilizing teams that make diversity a unique strength. His unique methodology and processes have been especially helpful in the rapidly changing cultural dynamics undergone in the GCC through training and migration of OCM's North American based talent. “Opulence’s principles have always been highly aligned with the belief that diverse opinions and backgrounds create unmatched teams and unparalleled results. I am proud to continue this ethos in the current period of rapid expansion as we endeavor to truly integrate with the local ecosystems and governments we serve.”
As Group CEO, Carreño will be responsible for ambitious growth plans for Opulence throughout 2023 and beyond including plans to hire and expand its sovereign advisory and fund management units in Saudi Arabia with more than fifty new roles expected in the coming year. His strategy of collaboration and creation of teams that blend local expertise and cultural understanding with diverse professionals from both the West and Far East plan to enable a fast-tracking of the goals of the GCC to foster inter-cultural cooperation and innovation leading to expedited development of more Knowledge-Based Economies.
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