The Board of Directors of the Panama Diamond Exchange has announced the election of Mahesh C. Khemlani as the next PDE President, according to an official release of the PDE. He will take over the responsiblity from Erez Akerman who will relinquish the post on October 30.

The Board also approved the appointment of Ali Pastorini, Director of Marketing of the World Jewelry Hub, as Senior Vice President of the Panama Diamond Exchange.

Khemlani holds a Masters in Public Administration from the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, where he was an Edward S. Mason Fellow. He has extensive experience, having worked in the private sector, with trade bodies as well as government in Panama over the last many years.

Currently Chief Investment Officer at Grupo VerdeAzul, a private investment firm in Panama, Khemlani earlier spent six years at the Ministry of Economy & Finance of Panama, most recently as Vice Minister of Finance. At the Ministry, he successfully led the efforts to establish the country's sovereign wealth fund and coordinated the high-level team responsible for obtaining the Investment Grade Credit Rating for the country. During his time in public administration he won many accolades, including Public Servant of the Year for 2012 by the Panama Chamber of Capital Markets (CAPAMEC), and by the Association of Stock Exchanges of Central America and the Caribbean (BOLCEN).

Before government, Khemlani was Vice President of Finance and Business Development at Optynex Telecom, a local exchange carrier serving the Panama Market. Prior to this role, he was a member of the Technology Investment Banking Group at CIBC World Markets (formerly known as Oppenheimer & Co.) and a financial analyst at Standard & Poor's Portfolio Management Data Group.

"We are truly fortunate to have an individual of the caliber of Mahesh, with his wealth of experience, knowledge, insight, ability and acumen, leading the Panama Diamond Exchange to the next level and beyond," said PDE Founding Chairman Eli Izhakoff, who presented Khemlani´s nomination before the Board.

Khemlani has thanked Izhakoff and the PDE Board for their vote of confidence and expressed his enthusiasm for the challenges ahead. "Our objective is to create a world-class organization that will power the development of the gemstone and jewelry business in our region, and simultaneously expand the commercial relationship between Latin American and the world. At this stage, our focus will be on increasing membership and attracting regional buyers. I firmly believe that we have the facilities, professional personnel and strategic vision to make that all happen."