Saffar chose finance as the subject of his life’s study early in his university career, earning his BA in finance with honors from Haute Etude Commercial (HEC) Carthage, Tunis, in 2001, before obtaining his MBA from Quebec’s Laval University, Canada, in 2003. He then completed his PhD in finance from HEC Montreal in 2008.

“I like my work load distribution to include both teaching and research in equal 50:50 proportions,” affirmed Saffar, whose resumé shows experience in both. 

Prior to joining the OSB, Saffar taught at HEC Montreal and the University of Southern Indiana; he gave courses in business finance, real estate principals, management of international investments, and international finance at the undergraduate and graduate levels. At AUB he is teaching business finance to undergraduates, whom he finds “good and smart.”

Saffar's research interests have so far covered many areas: privatization, international finance, political connections, auditor choice, and corporate governance. His research has been published in mainstream journals such as the Journal of Accounting and Economics and the Journal of Corporate Finance. Upon finishing his current work in progress, three papers, he aims to concentrate future study on the Middle East and North Africa region.

Saffar is motivated by “ambition and the will to succeed” in the areas of his interest. Outside academia, he likes sports, enjoys watching soccer, and goes to the gym five times a week. Quite keen on watching documentaries and listening to main-stream music, Saffar also loves travelling.

“I have already been to twenty different countries, but have not yet covered all my intended destinations,” he continued. With great zest for life, Saffar summarizes his guiding directives as “to strive, to seek, to persist towards one’s goals, and never to give up.”