Pathbreakers of Arab America--Third in Series: Mohamed El-Erian
By: John Mason / Arab America Contributing Writer
This is the third in Arab America’s series on American pathbreakers of Arab descent. The series includes personalities from entertainment, business, science, academia, and politics, among other areas. We will endeavor to represent the broad array of Arab Americans, including a mix of women and men, countries of origin, and fields of work. Our third pathbreaker case is world thought leader, educational and finance entrepreneur, of Egyptian heritage, Arab American Mohamed A. El-Erian.
Mohamed A. El-Erian, Renaissance Man brings together Finance, Education, and Philanthropy
Mohamed El-Erian was born in New York City on August 19, 1958, to Egyptian parents, when his parents served as Egyptian diplomats. He was educated at Queen’s College, Cambridge University, where he received a bachelor’s degree, and at St. Anthony’s College, Oxford University, where he earned master’s and doctorate degrees. Dr. El-Erian is the chief economic adviser at Allianz, a large corporation dealing in annuities and life insurance. He is also president of Queen’s College, one of his alma mater’s.
Prior to his role at Allianz, El-Erian was CEO and co-chief investment officer for an Allianz division, PIMCO. PIMCO or Pacific Investment and Management Company, is one of the largest investment management firms in the world, which actively manages over $2 trillion in assets. He is a much sought-after adviser on all aspects of the world economy and often appears on national TV. Significantly, El-Erian served on President Obama’s Global Development Council (2012–17), and is a columnist for Bloomberg View, and a contributing editor to the Financial Times.
El-Erian’s 2008 book, “When Markets Collide,” was a New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller won the Financial Times/Goldman Sachs Business Book of the Year, and was named a Book of the Year by The Economist and one of the best business books of all time by the Independent (UK). He was named to Foreign Policy’s list of “Top 100 Global Thinkers” for four years in a row. Since 2014, he has been serving on the jury for the Financial Times/McKenzie Book of the Year award. His latest book, published in January 2016, “The Only Game in Town: Central Banks, Instability and Avoiding the Next Collapse,” is a New York Times bestseller.
El-Erian is highly recognized for his philanthropic contributions, particularly in the areas of education and health. He has received several awards, including lifetime achievement from the 57357 Hospital for Children/Egyptian Cancer Network where he is the Honorary Chair. Other recognitions include the ABNA, Arab Banker of the Year, ACCESS Arab-American of the Year Award, Africa Investor’s Capital Markets Personality of the Year, the Middle East Institute’s Visionary Award, Worth magazine’s “100 Most Powerful People in Finance” (multiple years), among many other awards, too numerous to list.
Dr. El-Erian is the President of Queens’ College, at the University of Cambridge. He was installed on September 30, 2020. Throughout his career, El-Erian has been involved with universities and think tanks around the world, including the Rene M. Kern Professor of Practice at The Wharton School and Senior Global Fellow at the Lauder Institute (University of Pennsylvania). As Queens College President, he chairs meetings of the College’s Governing Body, which manages and directs the policies, activities, and day-to-day running of the College. El-Erian occupies a particularly important role in the lives of Queens’ undergraduate and graduate students.
El-Erian’s Egyptian parents, Abdullah El-Erian, and Nadia Shoukry moved back from New York City to Egypt shortly after his birth. He spent some of his early childhood in Egypt, with short periods in Europe where his father represented Egypt in meetings of the UN law commission. In 1968, the family moved back to New York when his father filled a position at the United Nations. Following that stint, the family moved to France, where his father served as Egypt’s Ambassador to France from 1971–73.
World “Thought leader,” still never far from his Arab origin, Egyptian roots
While El-Erian was a truly international persona, he never forgot his Egyptian origin. Skipping across decades of his international journey, we find him in July 2014 as a recipient of the Egyptian Cancer Network’s Lifetime Achievement Award for his support of cancer treatment and cures for children in Egypt. As already mentioned, El-Erian was honored in November 2015 with the Middle East Institute’s Visionary Award. The award recognizes “outstanding leadership in international economic and financial policy, melding creativity and vision with expertise to promote global prosperity.” El-Erian’s Arab interests went beyond Egypt. He was a board member of the Saudi King Abdullah University of Science and Technology. His philanthropic efforts over the years have emphasized education and health.
El-Erian is a widely recognized thought leader and is credited with developing the post-global financial crisis concept of the “New Normal”.[ Having first come up with the concept in January 2009 and after discussions with PIMCO, he wrote about it in May 2009 and presented it in several forums.
El-Erian’s interests are global, and his economic, financial, and political advice is sought worldwide. Nevertheless, he has never forgotten his Arab roots, Egyptian origin, and his responsibilities as a representative of Arab America to the world.
Sources:
–“List of Arab Americans,” Wikipedia, 2023
–“What We Learned from Mohamed El-Erian,” Morningstar, 3/28/2020
–“About Us,” Queens College (Cambridge University), 202
John Mason, PhD., who focuses on Arab culture, society, and history, is the author of LEFT-HANDED IN AN ISLAMIC WORLD: An Anthropologist’s Journey into the Middle East, New Academia Publishing, 2017. He has taught at the University of Libya, Benghazi, Rennselaer Polytechnic Institute in New York, and the American University in Cairo; John served with the United Nations in Tripoli, Libya, and consulted extensively on socioeconomic and political development for USAID and the World Bank in 65 countries.
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