Publicis Sapient Appoints Oliver Reppel and Rohit Mathew as Co-Heads of Financial Services for MENA

Appointment reflects Publicis Sapient’s commitment to driving digital business transformation and growth within the financial services and banking sectors in the Middle East

Riyadh, February 19, 2025: Publicis Sapient, a digital business transformation company, today announced the appointment of Oliver Reppel and Rohit Mathew as Co-Heads of Financial Services for MENA, based in Dubai.

Oliver and Rohit will work closely with clients across the Middle East to identify their business challenges and opportunities. By leveraging Publicis Sapient’s SPEED – Strategy, Product, Experience, Engineering and Data and AI – capabilities, deep portfolio of AI tools and platforms, and regional and industry expertise, they will help clients develop and deliver transformative strategies and navigate their digital business transformation journeys in the financial services and international banking sector.

“The Middle East’s financial services sector is undergoing significant digital business transformation, presenting immense opportunities for advancement, including embracing emerging technologies such as generative AI, and increased investment and partnerships between financial institutions and technology providers. Publicis Sapient continues to expand its footprint in the region and I’m excited to work alongside Oliver and Rohit to shape the future of financial services and banking in this dynamic market,” said David Murphy, Executive Vice President, Head of Financial Services International, Publicis Sapient.   

“I’m thrilled to join Publicis Sapient and be part of a team that’s leading the charge in the AI-driven digital business transformation marketplace,” said Oliver Reppel, Publicis Sapient’s Head of Financial Services, MENA & International Banking. “Together with Rohit and the entire team, we will build upon the company’s strong financial services foundation in MENA and drive forward strategic, value-focused initiatives that will help accelerate client growth and success.”

“I’m looking forward to co-leading Publicis Sapient’s financial services practice in MENA at such a pivotal time for the industry driven by rapid digitalisation and technological integration, economic diversification initiatives and regulatory support for innovation. I look forward to leveraging the company’s unique SPEED capabilities to create seamless, technology-driven financial solutions for our clients,” said Rohit Mathew, Publicis Sapient’s Head of Financial Services, MENA & International Banking.

Publicis Sapient works with financial services clients in the Middle East on AI-powered digital business transformation, leading pivotal initiatives to help modernise corporate, commercial and Islamic banking institutions. With a proven and repeatable approach, Publicis Sapient is helping institutions across the Middle East and North Africa, discover new areas of business growth and innovate new customer experiences, incorporating leading-edge technologies, like generative AI.

Oliver joins from Accenture, where he led the financial services business in the Middle East. He brings over 24 years of experience in financial services, specifically within the domains of retail, corporate and investment banking along with central banks and payments.

Rohit also joins from Accenture as Middle East Banking Lead, where he led a large portfolio of financial services clients. Prior to that, he worked at KPMG within the management consulting team focused on financial services in the Middle East.  Rohit brings over 19 years of experience in financial services across both the public and private sectors in the Middle East.