MasterCard has appointed Raghav Prasad as the general manager for operations in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait and Oman.

The new appointment demonstrates MasterCard’s commitment to driving financial inclusion, supporting a world beyond cash, and investing resources in key markets, said a company statement.

Prasad has over 26 years of global experience in consumer banking as well as the cards and payments industry. He has also held a number of leadership roles at country, regional and global levels with Citibank and RBS, it added.

"In order for a business to continue growing, it needs to constantly evolve,” remarked Raghu Malhotra, division president, (Mena).

"As a company, we continue to assess and develop our business model in an attempt to get closer to our customers. Part of this involves decentralizing our business as we look to put fully-functional teams in our key markets. It also involves investing in people and constantly fine tuning our efforts to ensure that we are always aligned to market needs," he noted.

In his new role, Prasad will focus on strengthening relationships with existing customers and provide strategic direction to grow MasterCard’s business across his markets. He will be based in Doha.

On the appointment, Malhotra said: "Prasad brings with him a wealth of experience, and is ideally placed to head our business in these markets."
 
"He is a proven leader with a deep understanding of the payments space and unique insight into the region honed while running his own consulting practice focusing on the Middle East and Africa for the last two years. We are delighted to have him on board," he added.-TradeArabia News Service