Leadership & Governance

Governance Overview

Alkagesta is a global multi‑commodity trading house headquartered in Malta and operating under the legal and regulatory framework of Malta and the European Union. The Group maintains a structured governance system, an independently overseen compliance programme, and a transparent corporate structure through Alkagesta Holding Co. Ltd and Alkagesta Limited (Malta), the Group’s primary booking entity. Alkagesta adheres to all applicable UN, EU, OFAC, OFSI, and SECO sanctions regimes and applies rigorous due‑diligence, risk‑management, and ethical‑conduct standards across all jurisdictions where it operates.

Alkagesta’s leadership and governance framework is built on transparency, accountability, and disciplined decision‑making. As a global multi‑commodity trading house, the company operates under a structured, institutional governance system designed to ensure long‑term stability, responsible growth, and operational excellence across all markets where we operate.

Governance Structure

Alkagesta’s governance structure ensures clear oversight, independent control functions, and disciplined decision‑making across all business activities. The framework is built around the Board of Directors, the Executive Board, and a set of specialised committees responsible for risk, ESG and compliance, trading, and financial governance.

The Board of Directors, appointed by shareholders, is responsible for defining the company’s strategic direction and ensuring strong governance across all areas of the business.

The Executive Board oversees day‑to‑day operations, policies, procedures, and budgets, ensuring effective management and proper oversight of all key business functions. To support disciplined decision‑making, the Executive Board has established dedicated committees for each critical area of the organisation. These committees strengthen governance, enhance transparency, and ensure that specialised topics receive focused attention.

Each committee is composed of functional leaders and senior team members from the relevant business units. Committees meet regularly — and on demand when required — to review performance, assess risks, and make informed decisions that support the company’s strategic objectives.

Shareholders

Board of Directors

Audit Committee

Executive Board

Risk Committee

Trading and Business Development Committee

The Finance and Investment Committee

ESG and Compliance Committee

Leadership Structure

Board of Directors

The Group is managed by a Board consisting of three Directors, who are responsible for defining and overseeing the Group’s strategy, governance standards, and long‑term direction.

Pierre Gay

Board Member

Pierre Gay brings over 30 years of leadership in commodity finance, structured trade, and corporate governance. Since Alkagesta’s founding in 2018, he has provided strategic guidance that helped shape the company’s direction, culminating in his formal appointment to the Board in May 2022 to support Alkagesta’s continued global growth and financial oversight.

Prior to joining Alkagesta, Pierre served as Managing Director of Euronova Energies SA, leading initiatives in governance, structured finance, and strategic development.

Earlier, he spent nearly two decades at BNP Paribas (Suisse) SA (1995–2014), where he was Group Head of Commodity Finance and Member of Management. He directed major structured financing programs for international commodity clients, reinforcing BNP Paribas’s global leadership in trade and commodity finance.

Before BNP Paribas, Pierre held senior banking positions at United European Bank and Banque Bruxelles Lambert (Suisse) SA, specializing in corporate banking and client relationship management.

He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science from the University of Lausanne (UNIL). His governance expertise, financial acumen, and strategic insight continue to be instrumental to Alkagesta’s evolution as a trusted international trading house.

Orkhan Rustamov

Board Member, CEO and Founder

Orkhan Rustamov is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Alkagesta, a global commodity trading company headquartered in Malta. He leads the firm’s strategic vision, international expansion, and corporate governance, overseeing operations across 17 offices and representations worldwide.

From Alkagesta’s inception, Orkhan directed Trading and Business Development, building the company’s market presence and diversified portfolio. Starting with a core team of 11 professionals, he guided Alkagesta through its formative growth and structural evolution. In late 2021, he formally assumed the CEO role, steering the organization into its next phase of global positioning, disciplined governance, and sustainable growth—while preserving its entrepreneurial culture and founding values.

Before founding Alkagesta, Orkhan served as Head of Derivatives Trading at Coral PTE (2016–2017), where he managed complex trading and risk-management strategies across multiple energy markets.

His earlier career was with BP (2011–2016), where he held successive financial and commercial roles supporting major upstream and midstream projects such as the Azeri–Chirag–Gunashli (ACG) development and the Baku–Tbilisi–Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline. These experiences provided deep expertise in energy economics, valuation, and strategic planning.

Orkhan holds a First-Class Honours B.Sc. in Economics and Finance from the University of York (UK), is CFA Level I certified, and completed an Executive Program in Organizational Leadership at Harvard Business School. He is also a recipient of the Azerbaijani Government Scholarship for Education Abroad, awarded for academic excellence and leadership potential.

Mark Seccombe

Board Member

Mark Seccombe joined Alkagesta’s Board of Directors in November 2023, bringing over 30 years of global experience in commodities trading, derivatives, and risk management. His market insight and strategic oversight support Alkagesta’s continued international expansion and financial resilience.Since 2019, Mark has advised clients in the oil and commodity sectors on derivative strategies, market positioning, and risk mitigation.Previously, he spent over eight years as Director at Société Générale Newedge UK Ltd, where he managed trading operations, client relations, and structured risk solutions across global commodity markets. His leadership helped define the firm’s approach to futures trading and derivative strategy execution.Earlier in his career, Mark held senior roles at Dean Witter, Shearson Lehman Brothers, EF Hutton, and ACLI Commodities, gaining extensive experience in energy markets, structured hedging, and client advisory.He has successfully completed the Series 3 (National Commodities Futures Examination), underscoring his professional competence in commodities and derivatives trading. His expertise in risk management, financial governance, and market dynamics continues to add significant value to Alkagesta’s leadership team.

Ownership Journey

The Alkagesta ownership model is built on trust, discipline, and shared purpose — principles that have defined the company since its inception and continue to guide its development as a global multi‑commodity trading enterprise.

In 2018, a group of 11 professionals led by Orkhan Rustamov, each with deep experience in commodity trading, logistics, and risk management, set out to build an independent trading house with a long‑term vision. Their mission was to create a company anchored in unity, entrepreneurial spirit, continuous learning, and accountability.

With an initial seed investment from Kamran Aghayev, the founding team secured the resources to turn their vision into reality. From the outset, Alkagesta operated under a transparent governance model and a clearly defined shareholding structure — ensuring that control and decision‑making rested with the management team actively responsible for the company’s performance.

AOver the years, Alkagesta’s senior leadership has steadily increased its equity participation, while the seed investor’s stake has been gradually reduced. This deliberate transition reflects the company’s founding philosophy of management‑driven ownership, where those who lead the business also carry long‑term responsibility for its direction.

This model mirrors the structure of leading global trading houses, where equity is concentrated among senior executives and key contributors who directly influence strategy, performance, and risk management. Such alignment between ownership and accountability fosters resilience, disciplined execution, and long‑term value creation through changing market cycles.

Today, Alkagesta is a global organisation of more than 150 professionals, guided by an experienced executive board and supported by institutionalised operating principles. Its governance system ensures that operations and decision‑making are structured, transparent, and not dependent on any individual — reinforcing the company’s belief that ownership is a responsibility, not merely a financial stake.

Legal Identity & Regulatory Standing

Alkagesta operates through a clear and transparent corporate structure. Shareholders hold their interests in Alkagesta Holding Co. Ltd, which serves as the parent company of the Group. Alkagesta Holding Co. Ltd fully owns Alkagesta Limited in Malta, which functions as the Group’s primary booking entity and operational headquarters. From Malta, the company oversees a network of subsidiary offices and representations across 17 locations — including Switzerland, the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, Singapore, Türkiye, Romania, the Netherlands, and others — ensuring global reach while operating under the legal and regulatory framework of Malta and the European Union.

All corporate governance, financial reporting, compliance, and risk‑management processes are aligned with EU directives, Maltese corporate law, and applicable international regulations. This regulatory foundation ensures full transparency, accountability, and adherence to the highest standards of responsible corporate conduct across all jurisdictions where the Group operates.

Compliance & Ethics Framework

In addition to full compliance with Maltese law and the regulatory framework of the European Union, Alkagesta — including Alkagesta Limited as the Group’s primary booking entity — adheres to all applicable UN, EU, OFAC, OFSI, and SECO sanctions regimes, as well as relevant national regulations in every jurisdiction where the Group operates.

This ensures that all transactions are executed responsibly, transparently, and in full alignment with international regulatory expectations.

Oversight of Alkagesta’s compliance programme is exercised by the ESG & Compliance Committee, which reports directly to the Executive Board. This structure guarantees independent authority and strategic alignment, ensuring that compliance decisions are never subordinated to commercial considerations.

The Committee’s mandate includes:

policy oversight
sanctions and AML/CFT risk assessment
monitoring implementation across all group entities
escalation of compliance matters to the Executive Board

This ensures consistency, accountability, and disciplined governance across every operational layer.

A full overview of Alkagesta’s sanctions compliance, due‑diligence systems, and regulatory controls can be found in the Compliance link.

Risk Management framework

Alkagesta maintains an independent risk‑management function responsible for market, credit, operational, and compliance risk oversight. Risk policies, limits, and controls are reviewed regularly by the Risk Committee to ensure disciplined, responsible, and transparent trading activity. This framework ensures that risk‑taking remains aligned with the Group’s governance standards, regulatory obligations, and long‑term strategic objectives.

A full overview of Alkagesta’s risk‑management framework, policies, and oversight processes can be found in the Risk Management section link.