Areas of expertise
 

- Assessment and development of business strategies

- Mergers and acquisitions and major project management

- Investment and asset management

- Blockchain and cryptocurrencies

- Fintech and electronic payments

- Data analytics and behavioural segmentation

- Retail banking, financial inclusion and microfinance
 

Professional background
 

After spending a year in France as a consultant expert in mathematical modelling in advanced industries, he returned to Morocco to take part in the first computerisation programme of the Direction Générale des Impôts, where he supervised key projects to support the effective implementation of the major tax reform of the time (introduction of VAT and IS for the first time in the Moroccan tax system).

In April 1986, he joined the Banque Centrale Populaire Group as part of a core group of experts responsible for managing and implementing the first major transformation programme of the Group's organisation and technological platforms. He then held various positions (project manager, information systems architect, etc.) before becoming head of the organisation and processes department. In this capacity, he led several high-impact projects, including the re-engineering of key processes to improve the efficiency of Morocco's leading retail bank.
 

In 2003, the Group entrusted him with responsibility for the Marketing and Communications Division, which covers all market segments in which the bank operates. He led a series of far-reaching reforms aimed at transforming this function into an innovative, learning structure and enriching the Bank's offering. Through this fundamental work, he has succeeded in placing marketing at the heart of the Bank's business, transforming it into a "marketing-driven" and "customer-centric" organisation. He has thus helped to consolidate the leadership of the Banques Populaires in their traditional markets (Moroccans living abroad, resident individuals and SMEs) and to add a new dimension to their commercial activities (significant gains in market share).
 

In 2008, he was put in charge of the business unit responsible for the retail and professional markets, which account for almost 40% of the Group's net banking income. He then revitalised the distribution of Banques Populaires and continued to close the gap with the main challengers in these markets, whether in terms of customer acquisition (annual rate of more than 450,000 new customers), savings collection (almost 50% of additional savings on the market) or household and professional financing (annual production of more than 10 billion DH).

Thanks to his versatile profile as a financier and experienced manager of major projects, in 2009 he oversaw the merger of Chaabi Leasing, the Group's subsidiary specialising in leasing activities, and Maroc Leasing. He defined an ambitious industrial project and managed the merger, which resulted in the creation of a national champion.

Following the Banque Centrale Populaire Group's acquisition of the investment bank Upline, he identified potential synergies with the Banques Populaires' activities, particularly in asset management and stock market intermediation, and set up a private banking structure within the Retail Banking Business Unit.
 

In 2011, he will be responsible for all the Group's commercial banking activities, including the markets for Moroccans living abroad and small and medium-sized enterprises, which account for almost 55% of the Group's net banking income. In order to regain the initiative in the market for the repatriation of the savings of Moroccans living abroad, in which it has considerable expertise, it is transforming the Group's distribution platform abroad and bringing it into line with regulations. It is now based on structured banking networks - those of its European banking subsidiary, Chaabi Bank, and those of its strategic banking partners around the world. In commercial terms, the overhaul of the operating methods of these networks has not only halted the erosion of market share, but has also enabled the Group to consolidate its share of the deposit market at over 52%.
 

In 2012, he actively contributed to the completion of the Group's acquisition of the sub-Saharan banking network of Banques Atlantiques and subsequently worked to restructure its operating mode to bring it into line with the parent company and to further develop the contribution of retail banking to the Group's net banking income.

Since November 2015, he has initiated and led the work to create and operationally launch an autonomous banking subsidiary dedicated to Islamic finance activities. In August 2018, he personally oversaw the effective launch of its activities.
 

In June 2019, as advisor to the Chairman and CEO of the Banque Centrale Populaire Group and an expert in electronic payment methods, he will manage the deployment of a strategy and restructuring programme for payments and mobile payment activities. The aim is to further strengthen the group's position in financial inclusion and retail mass banking.

In March 2021, he will go freelance and join an international group working on the development of financial services platforms based on blockchain and cryptoasset technologies. To date, this group has launched three major achievements: a cryptoasset trading platform, a crypto-payment token and a crypto-wallet that can manage both conventional bank accounts and payment instruments as well as crytocurrencies, thus merging conventional and decentralised finance.

At the same time, he founded a consultancy and today helps leading financial groups to evaluate and revise their development strategies and improve their knowledge of their customers through the judicious use of data science techniques.
 

Education background
 

After taking scientific preparatory courses at the Lycée Lyautey in Casablanca, Mr Laïdi El Wardi entered the Ecole Centrale de Lyon and graduated in 1983 (option - numerical analysis and mathematical modelling). He completed his basic academic training with several professional certificates in finance, strategic marketing, major project management, asset management, private banking and electronic payment systems.