Benoit Chervalier

The chairman and co-founder of the investment bank one2five advisory, Benoît Chervalier , has joined Airbus’s African and Middle Eastern team in Dubai as vice-president. Chervalier, who specializes in the African market, will oversee the company’s overall business development activities for the region.

In addition to leading the French investment bank, which aims to advise public and private entities in Africa on debt restructuring and equity, since 2015, Chervalier has gained valuable expertise in the financial advisory industry, as the head of the resource mobilization and external finance division at the African Development Bank and as Director of Rothschild’s Sovereign Advisory for Africa. He is also a lecturer at Sciences Po Paris, where he teaches the financing of African economies course, a university which he himself attended. Chervalier is also a lecturer at ESSEC business school.

With Chervalier’s appointment, Airbus is aiming to further develop its activities in the African market, as an integral part of its expansion strategy. Airbus already has a significant presence in the region, with activities across South Africa, Nigeria, Tunisia, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Oman employing over 3,100 people. The company’s regional headquarters are in Dubai.

According to the company’s Global Market Forecast report, commercial air traffic in the region is expected to see the most significant growth anywhere worldwide in the coming years, with 6% annual growth expected in the Middle East and 5.6 % in Africa.