New Amana Capital CEO Muhammad Rasoul is continuing to make his mark on the company and build out his management team. And to do it he is turning to some of the executives who worked with him at GFT (later acquired by GAIN Capital) and TradeTech / Finalto, which had acquired Mr. Rasoul’s Alpha Capital Markets.

Amana has named tech veteran Matt Carstens (pictured top left) as the new Director of Product Experience and Justin Biebel (top right) as Director of Product Implementation.

Matt Carstens will lead Amana app’s product functions and design, making sure the app is easy to use and includes innovative tools compelling to customers. Muhammad Rasoul, Chief Executive Officer of Amana said:

“We are very happy to welcome Matt to his role at Amana as we embark on a new and exciting journey for the brand. We are more than confident that his innovative, customer-centric mindset will bring value to the table. Furthermore, as an experienced trader himself, Matt deeply understands what tools and features to build within the Amana app to create a seamless trading experience for our customers that also enable our core ethos: access to trading for all via our jargon-free, comprehensive and user-friendly platform.”

Matt brings to Amana over two decades of cross-industry expertise, grounded in a strong entrepreneurial and commercial track record. Matt Carstens has acted in advisory and consultancy roles for a plethora of industry players, including Gain Capital, ThinkForex, UrbanStat, Ninja Trader, and Finalto where he was head of the Product. He also holds a patent for a unique method of facilitating trading across live and/or practice accounts.

“I am thrilled to be joining the very talented team at Amana,” said US-native Matt. “I want to thank Muhammad and the entire Amana family for their vote of confidence. It’s time our customers in MENA get an app designed for them, providing them access to international and regional markets, and built to world-class standards.”

Additionally, Justin Biebel will oversee backend and infrastructure development for Amana’s digital offerings as Director of Product Implementation.

“Justin is an outstanding veteran in the field and a brilliant mind, with over two decades of market-driven expertise,” said Rasoul. “He is an ideal match for Amana, not only for the experience he brings to the table, but his technical acumen and forward-thinking persona are in line with our brand values and ethos.”

Justin holds a rich background in risk management, market-making, and product development with a unique expertise in multi-asset derivatives. He began his trading career as an independent market maker at CBOE in 1999 and has since held roles as an FX options trader, quantitative product developer, portfolio manager, and global head of market risk management for one of the largest non-bank institutional liquidity solutions providers. After leaving the CBOE, Justin worked for firms including GFT Markets, GAIN Capital, IS Risk Analytics, Alpha, and Finalto. In 2015 he co-founded Luminist Capital, a registered investment advisory firm, where he led the company’s growth for the last 7 years.

 “Amana has had a successful track record for well over ten years within the industry”, said Justin. “I am particularly excited about joining Amana at this time and being able to contribute to its transformation.”

Other recent hires by Amana Capital include former Amazon exec Joy Dabeet as CMO, and another TradeTech Group alum Mani Sahota who joined as CIO.

Amana has recently announced the launch of its waiting list for its upcoming app, with customers signing up during this time receiving a hundred dollars’ worth of stock or cryptocurrency to help kickstart their trading journey. The new trading app, which is expected to launch mid-June, was developed in parallel with all recent hires, including Matt and Justin – key players in transforming the brand and its digital platforms.

Amana operates offices in the UAE, United Kingdom, Cyprus, Lebanon, Mauritius, and Malaysia. Group companies are regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority in the United Arab Emirates, the Financial Conduct Authority in the United Kingdom, the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CYSEC) in Europe, the Capital Markets Authority (CMA) in Lebanon, the Labuan Financial Securities Authority (LFSA) in Malaysia, and the Financial Services Commission (FSC) in Mauritius.