or a man whose motto is “Do a bit more. Be a bit better. Don’t settle for average,” Tamer Bazzari, CFA, has exceeded his expectations by a long shot. At 34, he is the youngest partner in his firm, Rasmala Investments, by at least ten years.

		Tamer Bazzari, CFA, is a partner and head of investment banking at Rasmala Investments. Prior to joining Rasmala, he was the senior advisor to the Dubai Financial Market and worked on setting-up the Dubai International Financial Centre and Amlak Mortgages, in addition to founding the CFA Emirates Society. Bazzari holds a bachelor of commerce from McGill University and a graduate degree from Concordia University, Canada, as well as a charter in accountancy.

       Anything but average, Bazzari says that earning a CFA charter “definitely helped accelerate [his] career.” His role now at Rasmala Investments includes overseeing the investment banking division of the firm that is one of the first regional firms to meet the Dubai Financial Service Authority’s (DFSA) rigorous regulatory standards.
       Founded in 1999, Rasmala focuses on asset management and investment banking services for Middle Eastern clients. With offices in London, Dubai, and Jordan, it offers private equity funds dedicated to investing in the Middle Eastern financial services sector and brokerage services in an increasingly liberalized financial market.
       With the development of the United Arab Emirates’ capital markets, firms like Rasmala are feeling an increase in demand for qualified investment professionals.
       “The problem here in the Middle East is that there’s limited depth in human talent,” Bazzari says. “We try to recruit top-notch people with a good education, and having a CFA designation definitely helps.”
       Bazzari points out that three of the nine members of Rasmala’s management team are CFA charterholders.
       “What I like about the CFA exam is it gives you a 360 degree understanding of investment management,” he says, “so it gives the professional a comprehensive view of how everything works together.”
       As an employer, Bazzari says that he looks for smart people with a good attitude and an ability to learn. He says that the CFA designation is highly regarded in the region and is often listed as a requirement for investment or portfolio management jobs.
       Bazzari himself began the CFA Program at the urging of his first employer, Deloitte & Touche. Even though he had already acquired three degrees, a bachelor’s in finance and accounting from McGill University, a graduate diploma in accounting from Concordia University, and a charter in accountancy, he took on the CFA designation to further enhance his career efforts.
       “For me particularly, career is very important,” he says.
       His outlook toward his career reflects the constant sense of challenge of his personal motto. “You always have to have a goal or you become flat,” he says. “If you have motivation, if you’re used to kind of accelerating then you always will become better, bigger, richer—successful.”
       At each stage of his professional life, Bazzari challenged himself with specific targets and then reached them. This career strategy led him from a senior auditor position with Deloitte & Touche, to a supervisory position with Ernst & Young in the UAE, to a senior advisor post at the newly formed Dubai Financial Market (DFM), to partnership in Rasmala—all in short order.
       Meanwhile Bazzari felt the need to accomplish something for the community as well. So, while he was working as the second-in-command at the DFM, he founded the CFA Emirates society. “It was about what can I do that is rewarding and also give something back?” he said. “I felt that having a society here and working on things such as ethical standards and corporate governance was paramount.”
       His convictions, which extend CFA Institute advocacy efforts for fair and transparent practices in the Middle East market, are firmly in line with his firm’s stated corporate goals. Rasmala not only supports global best practice standards, but it specifically supports CFA charterholders and candidates in the region. In January, Rasmala worked closely with the CFA Emirates Society in Dubai to organize this year's regional meeting for CFA member societies in Europe, Africa, and the Middle East.
       CEO and founder of Rasmala Investments, Ali al Shihabi says that sponsoring the regional conference was their way of offering fundamental support for a credible financial market. “As investment bankers, we have a responsibility to assist regulators in the implementation of a regulatory framework,” al Shihabi said. “This conference is just the start of this process.”
       With that kind of attitude, having a long-term goal that requires constant attention and energy at the forefront of the firm, Rasmala and Bazzari are in synch.
       “The goal is to always do better,” concludes Bazzari. “You always want to be ahead of the competition, ahead of the game.”