If infrastructure is Saudi Arabia's word of the moment, then one man is proving vital to the success of the sector. Lawyer John Xefos has played a vital role in devising a scheme to privatise the utilities at some of the kingdom's vital industrial cities, has assisted with restructuring the power sector generally, and also helped with negotiations over the Saudi Chevron project financing.

Xefos also structured the largest IPO ever carried out in Saudi Arabia, that of Saudi Telecom Co (STC). He additionally plays a key role in advising foreign clients on the various aspects of doing business in the country.

Having joined law giant Baker & McKenzie in 1980, Xefos moved to Riyadh three years later, and has been responsible for turning the site into one of the leading corporate and finance offices in the country.

Before becoming a lawyer, he studied at the Cornell University and later became one of the first people to study law, Middle East studies and Islamic law at the University of Pennsylvania. He is a member of the Chicago Bar, Illinois State Bar and American Bar Associations.

Away from corporate life, Xefos is married to businesswoman Lubna Olayan, chief executive of the mammoth Olayan Financing Group. The couple live in Riyadh with their three daughters.