Saudi Aramco President and CEO Amin H Nasser tops the Forbes Middle East’s sixth annual Top 100 CEOs list, which spotlights the executives leading the region’s most impactful organisations.
ADNOC Group Managing Director and Group CEO Sultan Al Jaber takes the second place, while Emirates Airline & Group’s Chairman and Chief Executive Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum secures the third spot.
Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC) Deputy Chairman and CEO Nawaf Saud Al-Sabah and International Holding Company (IHC) CEO and Managing Director Syed Basar Shueb rank fourth and fifth, respectively.
This year’s ranking, representing 21 nationalities, highlights the Middle East’s increasingly diverse leadership landscape. Emiratis lead the list with 31 executives, followed by Egyptians and Saudis with 15 and 13, respectively.
Banking and financial services continue to dominate with 30 entries, followed by real estate and construction with eight. Notably, the top 10 CEOs all hail from GCC countries and represent five different industries, reflecting the sectors powering the region’s economic momentum.
As architects of growth and transformation, these leaders are doing more than delivering business results — they are driving innovation, expanding global competitiveness, and helping shape the future of the Middle East’s economies, Forbes Middle East said.
To curate the ranking, Forbes Middle East took into account several metrics, including their impacts on the region, their country, and the markets they serve; their overall experience and time in their current role; the size of the company in terms of key financial metrics; achievements and performance of the CEO over the past year, along with the innovations and initiatives they have implemented.
Top 10 CEOs In The Middle East 2026
1. Amin H. Nasser
Nationality: Saudi
President & CEO, Saudi Aramco
2. Sultan Al Jaber
Nationality: Emirati
Group CEO & Managing Director, ADNOC Group
3. Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum
Nationality: Emirati
Chairman & Chief Executive, Emirates Airline & Group
4. Nawaf Saud Al-Sabah
Nationality: Kuwaiti
Deputy Chairman & CEO, Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC)
5. Syed Basar Shueb
Nationality: Emirati
CEO & Managing Director, International Holding Company (IHC)
6. Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi
Nationality: Qatari
Deputy Chairman, President & CEO, QatarEnergy
7. Nasser Al Huqbani
Nationality: Saudi
CEO, Health Holding Company (HHC)
8. Abdulla Mubarak Al-Khalifa
Nationality: Qatari
Group CEO, QNB Group
9. Waleed Abdullah Al-Mogbel
Nationality: Saudi
Managing Director & CEO, alrajhi bank
10. Aflah Al Hadhrami
Nationality: Omani
Managing Director, Petroleum Development Oman (PDO)