Ludwig Stiftl, born in Germany in 1964, studied business administration and oriental languages, most prominently Arabic, in Munich. After a diploma thesis on Islamic Banking in Egypt, he did his Ph.D. in Islamic studies on Yemeni Islamic parties, involving studies of Usul al fiqh, in Yemen and Berlin.

He joined Munich Re in 2000, working in the Life department for Arab countries and subsequently in the Non-Life underwriting division as country manager for Pakistan and member of Munich Re's Retakaful task force.

From December 2007, Ludwig Stiftl was CEO of Munich Re Retakaful in Kuala Lumpur. In October 2009, he returned to Munich to head the Centre of Competence for Retakaful at Munich Re.

Apart from his family with three lively sons, he still has a vivid personal interest in learning about non-European history, languages and cultures.