Raya Alkhatib

A highly accomplished Corporate Partner and the Head of the Corporate and M&A Practice for the Riyadh office. I offer sophisticated, market-leading counsel on a comprehensive range of corporate matters for both international and local clients

My practice is centred on complex corporate transactions and governance, including:

• Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A): Leading and executing high-value acquisitions and divestitures.

• Joint Ventures and Strategic Partnerships: Structuring and negotiating multifaceted collaborations.

• Corporate Governance: providing strategic advice on complex governance frameworks, compliance and regulatory adherence.

• Employment and Saudi Labor Law: Delivering specialized counsel on critical employment law and labour relations matters.

Prior to my current role, I served as General Counsel, Corporate Governance Officer and Board Secretary at American Express Saudi Arabia in Riyadh. This pivotal, three-pronged leadership role involved in managing all facets of the company's legal framework and governance, specifically:

• Strategic Advisory: Providing daily, mission-crticial legal counsel on general corporate, finance, payment services, co-brand agreements, and vendor partnerships.

• Governance and Compliance: advising the Board of Directors, executive management and relevant stakeholders on all corporate governance rules and regulations. This included full compliance with Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) Regulations and the Ministry of Commerce Governance Regulations.

• Key initiatives: Advising on strategic partnerships with major local banks and overseeing legal aspects of launching payment services on multinational and local platforms.

I began my career as a corporate associate in the Riyadh office of a prominent international law firm, where I built a solid foundation in transactional law over several years.