Khalifa Al Shamsi

Appointed as Chief Executive Officer of e& life in February 2022, Khalifa Al Shamsi is responsible for expanding the digital portfolio of the business pillar of e& that brings the next generation digital world to the consumer’s fingertips, utilising the latest technologies, smart platforms and apps in fintech, entertainment, retail and mobility services.

Khalifa’s extensive expertise in telecom and digital services, coupled with a strong commercial and technical background, has also played a key role in the success of Etisalat UAE, rebranded as etisalat by e&. Backed by 29 years of experience in the telecom, media, and ICT industries, he spearheaded the Group’s first move into the technology space with the successful deployment of mobile services, fibre-based broadband and advanced data services.

Harnessing the company’s ambition to create a ‘larger-than-life’ customer experience, Khalifa will add next-gen technology and service offerings to the portfolio of e& life, bring the dynamic digital world into the hands of consumers, utilising the latest technologies, smart platforms and applications in fintech, entertainment, retail and mobility services, as well as curating and capturing new opportunities in the digital marketplace.

In his previous role as the Group Chief Corporate Strategy & Governance Officer of e&, Khalifa contributed significantly to formulating the vision and future strategic priorities of the organisation, developing robust strategic initiatives in alignment with the long term directorial vision of the company.

Previous to this, as Group Chief Digital Services Officer, a first for any telco in the region, Khalifa paved the way for the organisation’s digital vision. The devised digital vision incorporated multiple industry verticals to provide advanced communication and cloud services, building capabilities for various digital solutions for the future, launch of high-definition voice and video calling application C’ME setting a benchmark in video OTT communication and introduction of IoT/M2M solutions that play an essential role in advanced platforms today. This ignited a multitude of opportunities to work on various smart projects and initiatives for both the public and private sector enabling the digital transformation journeys of governments, corporates and enterprises.

He has held several leadership positions within the Group, including Head of Mobile Networks and Chief Marketing Officer. In addition, Khalifa serves as Chairman of evision (the UAE-based TV content & multimedia company). Khalifa is also actively associated with industry organisations as a member of GSMA and Chairman of the executive committee at UAE International Investors Council (UAEIIC).

In addition to these positions, he is the board member at WIO Bank, member of the Board of Directors at Etisalat Technology Services and Saudi Arabia’s Etihad Etisalat ‘Mobily’ where he served as a Managing Director for five years. He was also a former board member at PTCL and Ufone in Pakistan and Etisalat Afghanistan.
Khalifa has a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Kentucky, USA.