First Class Of ABANA Fellows: Building Bridges Between The U.S. & MENA Region

Rakan Aboneaaj, MBA ’26
The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania

BACKGROUND

Where did you grow up? How do you believe this shaped your professional aspirations? I grew up in Gwinnett County, GA in a big Palestinian family. Most of the previous generation works together in the family hotel renovation business, which my uncle and his childhood friend started after he arrived in the US. Growing up in this environment gave me faith in the power of business to improve lives and deliver economic mobility, which is what has driven me to pursue a career at the intersection of finance and impact.

Brief summary of your undergraduate studies: I concentrated in Economics and Middle East Studies at Brown University, graduating in 2019. I also took many classes in Brown’s Portuguese and Brazilian Studies department, learning Portuguese and studying abroad in Brazil. After graduating, I was awarded a Fulbright Research Grant to explore the economic integration of Syrian refugees in São Paulo, Brazil.

Summary of your professional career so far: Before coming to Wharton, I was an associate at Social Finance, an impact finance and advisory non-profit, where I worked on impact investments and data analytics. Before Social Finance, I was a part-time consultant on the World Bank’s Private Capital Facilitation unit and a research associate on the Center for Global Development’s Sustainable Development Finance team. In both these roles, I conducted research and wrote policy proposals to help development finance institutions make more efficient use of the scare public capital at their disposal.

ABANA FELLOWSHIP

Why did you apply for the ABANA Fellowship? I applied to the ABANA Fellowship for three reasons. Firstly, it provides generous financial support, which will help me take advantage of all the opportunities that my MBA program has to offer. Secondly, being an ABANA fellow is an incredible opportunity to build relationships with leaders in the finance world who also share an interest or background in the Middle East. Third, the fellowship pairs you with a mentor from the ABANA’s Foundation’s board, all of whom are accomplished leaders in the industry.

What was your reaction to being selected? While I don’t have insight into the details of the selection process, looking across the incredible backgrounds of my fellow recipients, all of them have a track record of leadership, and a commitment to harnessing the power of finance to advance innovation and impact. I feel incredibly lucky and blessed to be among them, and I think that I was chosen based on a similar criteria – I’ve devoted my career to date to exploring how finance can be used to improve the world we inhabit, and have taken up roles and responsibilities in my personal and professional life aimed at empowering my colleagues and community, whether by serving as co-chair of the Center for Global Development’s DEI committee, or volunteering at the Museum of Palestinian People in Washington, DC.

What are you most looking forward to from the fellowship? While the financial support is incredibly helpful (doing an MBA is expensive), the community and mentorship provided by the Fellowship are its most valuable aspects by far. I feel lucky to have been raised in a big, supportive Arab-American family in Georgia, but growing up, I had very few classmates and mentors who shared my Arab-American identity. Over the summer, I attended my first ABANA networking event and met many other ABANA members, including my mentor, which was incredibly inspiring and empowering. These are professionals who understand my background and values, and who I can get advice from and collaborate with in the years to come. Relationships are important in any industry, but especially in finance, so learning from and contributing to this community is what I am most looking forward to in the years to come.

Describe your position/relationship with Arab/MENA culture and how it has impacted your career: Family was a key value in my own upbringing, as it is for many from the Middle East. My eldest uncle, Ahmed, immigrated to the US when he was 16 and saved every dollar he could to send his youngest brother, my father, to university. In turn, my dad used his education to follow my uncle to the US and help grow the hotel renovation business my uncle had started, which still supports our family today. Growing up, witnessing my family’s commitment to helping one another instilled in me a sense of duty to use my education and career to uplift others. This is what underpinned my decision to work in economic development and impact investing, and what drives me as I move forward in my career.

Why are organizations like ABANA needed, in your opinion? My family’s experience has shown me the power of mutual support. I see ABANA as replicating this environment on a greater scale – connecting finance professionals who share a set of values and commitment to the MENA region so that they can accomplish more together. Investing in the education of young professionals is just the tip of the iceberg – through relationship-building, mentorship, policy discussions, and co-investment, ABANA creates a community of professionals that is greater than the sum of its parts, and in a better position to empower MENA communities in the US and abroad.

B-SCHOOL/CAREER ASPIRATIONS

Why did you want to pursue an MBA? My career pre-MBA I was mostly working with concessional finance providers – development banks, governments, philanthropies, and other institutions who can accept a below-market rate return on their investments. These institutions are incredibly important, especially in high-risk sectors like emerging markets or technological innovation. However, because this type of investment is so costly, it is limited in scale. We need trillions to fill the massive climate and development finance gaps that the world faces, and most of this will ultimately need to come from commercially oriented investments and enterprises. My primary reason for pursuing an MBA was so that I could gain experience in this space. Since joining, I’ve also come to appreciate the ‘soft skills’ development that an MBA, and especially Wharton provides through its emphasis on group work, extracurriculars, and team dynamics. No matter your sector, as you grow in your career, how you interact with the people around you is what most determines success.

Why did you choose your particular MBA program? I was first attracted to Wharton because of the strength and reputation of its finance program. In addition to the coursework, there are numerous extracurricular opportunities to get hands on investing experience, including Wharton Impact Investing Partners, Penn’s Fund for Health, and Wharton Impact Venture Associates, and Center City Ventures (to list only a few), which I am excited to explore. However, after being admitted, what ultimately made my decision were the emphasis on team dynamics, and the people. While preparing for Wharton’s team-based discussions was a slog, it was extremely effective in having me think critically about my role within teams, and afterwards I realized I wanted to be in an environment with an explicit focus on team dynamics and leadership. Moreover, since the TBDs and Welcome Week, and now being on campus, I am constantly impressed by the experiences, drive, and ambition of the people I am surrounded with. While this comes with a not insignificant degree of impostor syndrome, the social and friendly vibe on campus mitigates it, and makes me extremely excited to be a part of this community moving forward.

Are you pursuing any concentrations? If so, what? I plan to concentrate in Quantitative Finance and Business, Environment, Energy, and Sustainability (BEES). In my previous role at Social Finance, I was on our data analytics team, so I am excited to continue exploring how quantitative tools can support the investment process. The BEES concentration is centered on exploring relationships between business, environmental risks, and energy, which is the ideal preparation for my goals in the climate finance space.

What are your future career aspirations? How do you think the ABANA Fellowship will help in this regard? I plan to use business school to explore different aspects of the climate investing process, and after graduating, hope to take a role supporting investments in the sustainable infrastructure and/or energy space. Long-term, I hope to lead an impact investment fund focused on this sector. Again, the ABANA network will be invaluable in helping me accomplish these goals – many of its members are leaders in the field who I feel comfortable reaching out to for advice as I go through business school, and eventually as I navigate the industry after graduation. In addition, the built-in mentorship aspect is incredibly helpful, and I have already leaned on my mentor to help me formulate my career next steps.

Do you hope to live and work in the Arab/MENA region after completing your MBA? Why or why not? As someone hoping to make an impact on economic development globally, I hope to get the opportunity to work abroad at some point, especially in the Middle East, which is at the epicenter of the global climate transition. That said, since most of my family are now in the US, it is hard to imagine leaving for too long.

How would you describe the current and future economic circumstance of the Arab/MENA region, particularly its place in an increasingly global economy. The Middle East is a region of contrasts, especially when considering climate change. On the one hand, you have robust economic growth in some countries, especially the Gulf, built off decades of hydrocarbon revenues, as well as increasingly ambitious economic diversification initiatives. On the other hand, many countries in the region face significantly lower living standard and are burdened by war, macroeconomic crises, and governance challenges. These also tend to be the countries most vulnerable to climate change, as they lack the means to invest in climate adaptation. To deliver long-term socioeconomic gains and climate adaptation to the broader MENA region, the region’s economic winners will need to make productive investments in their neighbors. While the volume of investment matters, it is also crucial that these capital inflows support economic diversification, sustainability, and policy agendas that address the underlying challenges above.

What’s next for you? Every MBA student I spoke with during the application process talked about how the first semester is a whirlwind, and they weren’t lying. Right now, I’m focused on learning how to be a student again, getting to know my 800+ classmates, and getting involved the many extracurriculars I’m interested in.

Anything you’d like to add? Thank you to the ABANA community – it is an honor and a privilege to be among the inaugural fellows, and I look forward to paying this opportunity forward in the years to come. I encourage prospective MBA students to apply to the fellowship next year, and to reach out if you have any questions. Also, you don’t have to be a student to get involved – anyone working in finance or a related industry with an interest in MENA can join ABANA as a member!

Finally, a huge thank you to my family, and my recommenders (Clemence Landers, Nancy Lee, and Sarah Tobin), without whom I wouldn’t be here.

NEXT PAGE: ABANA Fellow Sara Tayara, Stanford GSB