Mr Zakir Mahmood has close to four decades of working experience with leading banks in  Europe, the Middle East and Pakistan. In 2000, Mr. Mahmood was appointed as President and Chief Executive Officer of Habib Bank Limited, Pakistan’s largest Bank and was responsible for  its  restructuring, leading to the Bank’s successful privatisation in 2004. He served as the Bank’s CEO for almost 13 years.

Mr Mahmood is currently the Chairman of Kyrgyz Investment Credit Bank, Kyrgyzstan; First Microfinance Bank, Tajikistan; and of Jubilee General Insurance, Pakistan. He also serves on the Board of Aga Khan Agency for MicroFinance, Geneva and Jubilee Life.

Mr Mahmood has served on several Commissions of the Government of Pakistan, including two Pay and Pension Commissions. He has served as the Chairman  of the Global Agenda for Pakistan at the World Economic Forum(WEF) and Co-Chair of the  Pakistan France Business Council. He has also served as a director on several Boards, including the Karachi Stock Exchange, Steel Mills, Diamond Trust Bank, Kenya. 

Mr. Mahmood received his MBA and MS Engineering from the University of California, Los Angeles and holds a BE  in Engineering from NED College, Karachi.

In 2001, the Government of France decorated him with the Chevalier de L’Ordre National du Mérite. In 2005, the Government of Pakistan honoured him with the prestigious Sitara-e-Imtiaz award.​