Helmi Hamdi
Senior Economist, Central Bank of Bahrain
Helmi Hamdi is currently working as Senior Economist at the Central Bank of Bahrain, and he is a research Fellow at CERGAM Aix-Marseille Université. Previously, he served as Adjunct Professor of Economics at the London School of Economics (University of London, BIBF Site), a Country Risk Expert (EuroMoney Country Risk), Economic Advisor for the OECD-MENA Centre for Investment and Consultant for the UNDP. Helmi holds a PhD and an HDR in Applied economics from Aix-Marseille Université, and he eared multiple professional certifications from the IMF, the UNCTAD, and Visa, and other certifications from the Harvard Business school, the Imperial college Business school, the University of Hong Kong, and the University of California in Berkeley. Helmi is the author of 2 Books and more than 80 papers published in reputed journals including: Review of International Economics, Applied Economics, Economic Modelling, International trade Journal, Journal of Quantitative Economics, International Economic Journal, etc.
Areas of Interest:
- Economics of Banking
- Central Banking and Monetary Policy
- Environmental Economics
- The Economics of Payment Systems
Education:
- Habilitation à Diriger Des Recherches. (Accreditation to Supervise Research and PhD Thesis). Tite : Financial Liberalization and the Transformation of MENA Economy. Aix-Marseille University, 2022
- Doctorate in Applied Financial Economics. Faculty of Applied Economics. Paul Cezanne University. Aix-Marseille III. Title: Monetary and Financial innovations: the transformation of banking strategies within a competitive universe, 2008
- M.Sc in Applied Financial Economics. Faculty of Applied Economics. Paul Cezanne University Aix-Marseille III. 2004. (With the Highest distinction, Major), 2004.
Experience:
- Senior Economist, Financial Stability Directorate (FSD), The Central Bank of Bahrain, 2010 - Present
- Member of the Professional Advisory Committee (PAC), PhD Business Analytics Program, University of Bahrain, 2024 - Present
- Member of the Steering Committee on the Regional Research Network of Central Banks of the Middle East and North Africa. The World Bank. Washington DC, 2023 - Present
- Member of the Professional Advisory Committee of MSc in Finance, University of Bahrain, 2021 - Present
- Economic Expert, Asian Financial Cooperation Association, 2019 - Present
- Member of the Economic Advisory Board to the President of the Provence-Alpes-Cote d’Azur region. Marseille. France, 2019-2022
- Adjunct-Professor of Economics at the University of London. The London School of Economics and Political Science, international Program, 2017-2023
- MENA Countries Risk Expert at Euromoney Country Risk. London, 2012-2023
- Economic Advisor. OECD-MENA Centre for Investment. Manama, Bahrain, 2011-2012
- Assistant Professor and Tutor. Faculty of Applied Economics. Paul Cezanne University Aix-Marseille III and Research Fellow at the CAE/CERGAM, 2005-2010
Latest Publications:
- HAMDI H (2025). Does financial inclusion improve bank performance in the MENA region? Evidence from GCC and non-GCC countries. Cogent Business & Management 12(1). August 2025, with Saidi H, Hakimi A and Adili L.
- HAMDI (2024). How does energy intensity impact economic growth for the case of a small island country? Natural Resources Forum, a United Nationals Sustainable Development Journal, 1–17. With Janahi F and Mili M.
- HAMDI H (2023). Banking in the MENA region: the proactive role of financial and economic freedom. Journal of Policy Modeling. Volume 45, Issue 5, September–October 2023, Pages 1058-1076. With Hakimi and Khemiri. M.
