DOHA: Citi Qatar recently held a two-day Derivatives Workshop which presented various hedging strategies in the face of financial risk scenarios which threaten today’s corporate world.

Conducted by Michal Kowalczuk, Head of Citi’s FX Options Structuring in CEEMEA, the seminar featured more than 20 of Qatar’s top-tier treasury, finance and Investment officers from Qatar’s Public Sector, in addition to delegates representing Telecom, Auto, Trade, Infrastructure, Oil&Petrochemicals, and Finance sectors, along with Citi officials.

Participants formed virtual companies, each determining best hedging strategy in the face of a specific financial risk. Each company held a variety of foreign exchange, interest rate and commodities exposures, and opted for positions fitting pre-determined risk appetite.

“Our aim here was to show finance professionals how to best use derivatives in a constructive and responsible manner and to dispel any myth that might have been formed around these key treasury tools,” said Farhan Mahmood, CEO of Citi Qatar.

Citi has been in the Arab World for nearly 50 years and continues to view the region as critical to its global franchise. It currently operates in Egypt, UAE, Lebanon, Jordan, Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria, Bahrain, Qatar and Kuwait.