Zain Bahrain has named Ammar Al Ketbi as its new Chief Executive Officer, confirming a promotion for an executive who has spent more than two decades within the operator.
Al Ketbi joined Zain Bahrain in 2003 and has held a succession of senior roles across retail, indirect sales, consumer sales, and marketing. Most recently he served as Chief Consumer Marketing & Sales Officer before stepping into the Acting CEO role in February 2025. His formal appointment as CEO follows that interim period.
The operator described Al Ketbi as bringing over 22 years of telecommunications experience, with a track record spanning sales strategy, product innovation, and digital transformation. He holds a Bachelor of Banking and Finance degree from the University of Bahrain.
Zain Bahrain positioned the appointment as the start of a new growth phase for the operator, emphasising its ambitions as a key enabler of Bahrain’s broader digital transformation agenda.
Editor’s Note: The appointment lands at an interesting moment for Zain Bahrain — the operator’s parent group, Zain Group, simultaneously announced a new board of directors this week, suggesting a coordinated leadership reset across the franchise. Al Ketbi’s long internal career makes him a continuity pick rather than a strategic pivot hire; MEA Tech Watch will be watching whether his consumer-centric background shapes Zain Bahrain’s positioning as GCC telcos compete on 5G experience and digital services differentiation.
