Karim Hikal

Experienced financial leader professional with nearly two decades of progressive finance leadership across manufacturing, engineering, construction, trading, and real estate environments. Throughout career, built and led finance functions, strengthened financial control and governance, optimized treasury and banking structures, and supported shareholders and executive management with timely, actionable financial insight. Distinctive strength is the ability to connect finance, business processes, systems, and data, combining hands-on expertise across accounting, treasury, taxation, audit, financial analysis, management reporting, and finance transformation to improve visibility, control, risk management, and business performance.

Brings a CFO perspective that goes beyond financial control, translating financial and operational information into practical solutions that support strategic decisions, strengthen organizational performance, and enable sustainable business growth.

Chief Financial Officer (CFO) - EL-FATEH FOR INDUSTRIES & STEEL - Egypt

(2025-09)

Lead the finance function of a steel manufacturing company with approximately EGP 600M annual business volume, providing shareholders and management with financial insight, liquidity visibility, and stronger financial control.

• Transformed cash-flow management by designing and implementing a data-driven cash management and forecasting framework, providing timely visibility of liquidity, funding sources, and upcoming cash requirements.
• Established cash segregation by source and purpose, distinguishing shareholder funding from customer collections to strengthen control over available liquidity and prevent unintended use of restricted funds.
• Managed and proactively monitored substantial banking relationships and financing facilities, including overdrafts and letters of guarantee, supporting liquidity and operational continuity.
• Transformed financial reporting and management information by developing flexible reporting structures that consolidated financial data across multiple sources, improving management visibility and access to timely financial information.
• Strengthened Finance operations and reporting discipline, improving the consistency of daily financial activities and accelerating the availability of management information.
• Led and developed the Finance function, strengthening accountability, reporting discipline, and overall team performance.

Chief Financial Officer (CFO) - ARC TECHNOLOGIES - Egypt

(2023-10 - 2025-08)

Directed the finance function of a diversified trading and manufacturing group with approximately EGP 300M in annual turnover, covering both an electrical trading business and a local manufacturing operation, with responsibility for financial performance, profitability, planning, control, and financial decision support.

• Cost Management & Profitability: Established a product costing methodology integrating direct materials, direct labor, and manufacturing overhead, providing clear landed-cost and profitability visibility across trading and manufacturing.
• Finance Transformation & ERP: Led the finance-side Odoo ERP implementation and transformation, developing management reporting and system requirements tailored to the business and strengthening financial visibility and control.
• Tax Optimization: Developed a financial treatment related to currency devaluation that generated significant tax savings while maintaining regulatory compliance.
• Planning & Performance Management: Built annual budgets and established planned-versus-actual monitoring, strengthening cost discipline and management control across both businesses.
• Banking & Financing: Managed substantial banking relationships and financing facilities, leading bank negotiations and overseeing financial analysis, documentation, and ongoing banking requirements.

Finance & Internal Audit Manager - LA VERDE DEVELOPMENTS - Egypt

(2022-01 - 2023-09)

Managed internal audit, tax, and financial analysis activities, reporting directly to the General Manager and supporting project economics, investment decisions, and financial risk assessment across a portfolio of approximately EGP 3B in planned developments.

• Project Costing & Profitability: Developed detailed project costing and profitability analysis for residential and administrative developments, providing management with clearer visibility of unit economics and expected returns.
• Financial Analysis & Investment Feasibility: Conducted financial feasibility studies, NPV analysis, and investment evaluations to assess project viability and support investment decisions.
• Pricing & Payment Plan Modeling: Developed financial models for alternative pricing and payment structures using present-value analysis to evaluate their impact on project profitability.
• Management Information & Business Intelligence: Built an integrated management information environment that consolidated business data into management reports and analytical dashboards, improving visibility for executive decision-making.
• Internal Audit & Tax Risk: Conducted reviews of financial statements and business operations, identifying control weaknesses and tax risks and providing management with analysis and practical recommendations.

Financial Manager - DANIELI - Egypt

(2012-01 - 2021-12)

Led the finance function of Danieli's Egyptian operation within a multinational steel-industry environment, establishing the local finance framework while supporting major steel projects and managing financial reporting, taxation, compliance, and management information.

• Finance Function Setup: Established the accounting and financial documentation framework for the Egyptian operation from the ground up, creating the processes and controls required to support the company's local activities.
• Finance Systems & Transformation: Progressively developed the finance management environment from advanced Excel models to integrated solutions using Access, SQL, and Visual Basic, supporting accounting, reporting, payroll, taxation, and management information.
• Steel Industry Projects: Provided financial support for major steel-industry projects, including the establishment of Danieli's Egyptian operations for the Ezz Steel Direct Reduction Plant in Ain Sokhna and support for the Abu Hesham Steel Plant in Suez.
• Tax Management & Optimization: Led tax management and tax inspection activities and developed tax treatments that generated significant tax savings while maintaining regulatory compliance.
• Financial Reporting & Management Information: Managed local financial reporting and provided financial information to Group Finance in Italy, while continuously developing management reporting to meet evolving business requirements.

External Auditor & Tax Consultant - Ashraf & El-Hussieni Office - Egypt

(2007 - 2012)

Started professional career in external audit and tax advisory, working with SMEs and mid-sized businesses across multiple industries and building a broad foundation in accounting, taxation, financial reporting, and regulatory compliance.

• External Audit & Financial Advisory: Provided statutory audit, financial review, tax compliance, and advisory services to SMEs and mid-sized businesses across logistics, travel, trading, construction, and services.
• Tax & Regulatory Expertise: Conducted tax compliance reviews and developed practical expertise in Egyptian tax regulations and statutory requirements.
• Financial Foundation: Built broad hands-on experience across accounting, financial reporting, audit, taxation, and financial operations, establishing the technical foundation for subsequent finance leadership roles.

Bachelor of Commerce - Accounting - Ain Shams University (2007)