Al Arab’s CIB grows against the grain

Behind Hisham Ezz Al Arab’s desk at the Commercial International Bank headquarters in Giza, among the usual paraphernalia of flags and family photos and portentous front pages of Time magazine, is an unusual picture. It’s a man with his back to the lens holding an axe across his shoulders, with the title: ‘PREPARATION’. Beneath it is a message: ‘If you have a day to chop down a tree, spend half a day sharpening the axe.