Abdul Qadir Al Hasriya, the new governor of Syria’s central bank, has worked in finance-related jobs as a consultant for various international groups [AFP]
Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa has appointed Abdul Qadir al-Hasriya as the new governor of the Central Bank of Syria, following the resignation of Maysaa Sabreen just weeks after she took office in a caretaker capacity.
Al-Hasriya, a former partner at global accounting firm Ernst & Young (EY) in Syria, was sworn in before the president as the country enters a new political era after the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime in December 2024.
Sabreen, who served for less than three months, told Reuters that she resigned to allow the newly formed government – announced in late March – to name its own candidate. During her brief tenure, she pledged to strengthen the independence of the Central Bank, long weakened under heavy government control and corruption.
Economists widely agree that restoring the Central Bank’s autonomy is vital to achieving long-term macroeconomic and financial stability.
Though the institution is theoretically independent, monetary policy during Assad’s rule was largely dictated by the executive branch.
Who is Abdul Qadir al-Hasriya?
Born in 1961, al-Hasriya brings a rare combination of technical expertise and international experience. He studied business administration at the American University of Beirut (AUB), earning both a bachelor’s and master’s degree.
He later obtained a PhD in finance from Durham University in the UK, with a dissertation on the role of capital markets in housing finance.
Al-Hasriya also holds a Master’s in Public Law from Osgoode Hall Law School in Canada, where he focused on regulatory frameworks for digital currencies and crypto assets. Additionally, he holds a law degree from the University of Damascus and a bachelor’s degree in computer science from the Lebanese American University.
He has completed several elite executive programs, including tax policy and administration at Harvard Kennedy School, housing finance and capital market development at Wharton (University of Pennsylvania), and real estate finance at MIT.
Professionally, al-Hasriya has worked with leading firms including Ernst & Young and Arthur Andersen. He also served on the finance committee of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in Geneva.
In Syria, he advised on Central Bank reform with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and played a key role in drafting the public-private partnership law in cooperation with the World Bank.
Al-Hasriya’s appointment is being seen as a potentially transformative step for Syria’s financial sector. With the economy in deep crisis, a collapsing currency, soaring inflation, and international sanctions, the Central Bank faces immense challenges.
