Lubna Olayan

Lubna S. Olayan
Olayan at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in 2013
Born	(1955-08-04) August 4, 1955 (age 61) Saudi Arabia
Nationality	Saudi
Occupation	Business woman
Known for	First woman in Saudi Arabian history to give opening keynote address at a major conference in Saudi Arabia.

Lubna Suliman Olayan (born August 4, 1955) is a Saudi business woman. Born to Sulaiman Olayan and Maryam bint Jassim Al Abdulwahab. Considered to be one of the most influential businesswomen in the world; as was listed as one of the top 100 most influential people of 2005 by Time magazine, and has continued to be on the Forbes list of most powerful women till 2011 and has returned to the list in 2014. In 2004, Ms. Olayan was the first woman in Saudi history to deliver an opening keynote address at a major conference in Saudi Arabia; at the Jeddah Economic Forum. As of 2014, she is listed as the 86th most powerful woman in the world by Forbes.

Lubna S. Olayan is the chief executive officer of the Olayan Financing Company (OFC), the holding entity for the Olayan Group's operations in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Middle East; she also sits on the board of the group along with her brother Khaled and sisters Hayat and Hutham. It is thought that the private family has accumulated a fortune that tops $10 billion. The group was founded in 1947 by her father, the late successful entrepreneur Sulaiman S. Olayan, The Olayan Group is a private multinational enterprise engaged in distribution, manufacturing, services and investments. OFC operates or actively participates in more than 40 companies, often in partnership with leading multinationals. OFC is also one of the largest investors in the Saudi and regional .

In February 2005, Olayan was appointed as a non-executive director to the Board of WPP, and in December 2004, was elected to sit on the Board of the Saudi Hollandi Bank, a publicly listed company in Saudi Arabia. In September 2006 and April 2007, she joined the International Advisory Boards of Rolls-Royce and Citigroup, respectively. Olayan also served on the Board of Chelsfield plc, the UK property developer, from 1996 to 2004. She is a member of the International Business Council of the World Economic Forum, and the International Advisory Board of the Council on Foreign Relations, which she joined in November and December 2005 respectively. In 2010, she was awarded the Cornell Entrepreneur of the Year. As of 2014, she is listed as the 86th most powerful woman in the world by Forbes.