ABOUT US

Joseph Gau, Managing Director and Board Member

jgau@shariahcap.com

Initially responsible for business development, product placement, and investor relations, Mr. Gau today contributes in a senior role to a wide range of Shariah Capital's operations, including corporate strategy and new product initiatives.

Prior to joining the firm in 2003, Mr. Gau had a distinguished 25-year career in Middle East private banking and, more recently, marketing for hedge funds in the United States. Traveling regularly to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the countries of the Gulf to meet with high net worth investors and selected institutions, Mr. Gau held the position of Vice President and Head of the Middle East and Africa division for The Citibank Private Bank in New York for over 13 years. Subsequently, he worked in New York for Banque Indosuez, a French bank, Coutts & Co., a British private bank, and Merrill Lynch, the global brokerage firm, all in a senior capacity where he contributed to building their Mideast private banking businesses.

In the last several years, Mr. Gau was Senior Vice President at CastleRock Management, a long/short U.S. equity hedge fund manager where he was responsible for new business development, marketing and client services. Most recently, Mr. Gau was Senior Vice President directing marketing for Archery Capital, a New York-based fund of hedge funds.

Prior to these positions, Mr. Gau completed the Chase Manhattan Bank credit training program and became a lending officer of the bank, after which he was seconded to the Saudi Industrial Development Fund in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Thereafter, he became corporate treasurer of the Kuwait Food Company in Kuwait, a publicly-traded food processing and restaurant company with operations throughout 14 Middle East and African countries.

Having lived and worked in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, and having traveled repeatedly to these and other Middle Eastern countries for more than two decades, Mr. Gau brings invaluable contacts with and insights into the people and culture of this region. With experience that contributes directly to Shariah Capital's business focus, he has witnessed first-hand the shift in demand from conventional Western investment and finance products to Shariah compliant products.

As a member of Shariah Capital's Board, Mr. Gau serves as a member of the Company's Audit Committee. His duties on this committee include:

• Reviewing the scope and results of the annual audit and its cost effectiveness and the independence and objectivity of the auditors
• Reviewing the actions and judgments of the Company's management in relation to, the half-year and annual accounts before their submission to the full Board
• Ensuring the integrity of the financial statements and any formal announcements relating to the Company's financial performance published by the Company

As a member of the Company's Compensation Committee, Mr. Gau's responsibilities include:

• Reviewing and making recommendations in relation to specific compensation packages and service agreements for executive directors, including basic salary, any benefits in kind, any annual bonuses, participation in any long term incentive plans and any pension entitlements
• Making recommendations in relation to the participation of directors in the Company's share option schemes, including the selection of those eligible directors and employees of the Company to whom options should be granted; the numbers of shares over which options are to be granted; and the exercise price at which options are to be granted
• Overseeing any major changes in employment benefit structures throughout the Company or group

As a member of the Company's Nomination Committee, Mr. Gau's responsibilities include:

• Identifying and nominating for the approval of the Board, candidates to fill vacancies as and when they arise, in accordance with the Principles of Good Governance and Code of Best Practice contained in the Combined Code
• Giving full consideration to succession planning taking into account the challenges and opportunities facing the Company and what skills and expertise may be needed on the Board in the future
• Making recommendations to the Board as regards the re-appointment of any non-executive director at the conclusion of his/her specified term of office and in particular when he/she has concluded his/her second term in office

Mr. Gau received his B.A. from Brown University where he majored in International Relations with a concentration on Middle Eastern studies. As part of his major, Mr. Gau completed an honors thesis on Iran which involved travel to and research in remote villages in that country.