MasterCard Creates New Sub-Regions In Asia/Pacific region

MasterCard announced yesterday (June 18) the appointment of two Co-Presidents of two new sub-regions, which include the region’s biggest markets – China and India. Ling Hai and Ari Sarker are Co-Presidents of the Asia-Pacific region. Ling Hai will be focused on North East Asia and Australasia (NEAA) and Ari Sarker will be focused on South East Asia and South Asia (SEASA).

MasterCard says it wants to develop its business based on regional market specificities and pace. In Australia, for instance, two-thirds of MasterCard transactions are already contactless in-store payments. In more emerging markets like Indonesia, people are just getting online.

Meanwhile, MasterCard’s Mobile Shopping Survey published this week (June 17) found that Asia Pacific consumers are embracing the convenience of mobile shopping with nearly half of consumers (45.6%) having made a purchase using their smartphone in the three months preceding the survey. Nearly half of consumers have made a purchase using their smartphone, led by those in China (70.1%), India (62.9%) and Taiwan (62.6%).

Commenting on the appointments, Ann Cairns, President, International Markets, MasterCard said: “We see enormous potential for the Asia/Pacific region and with this new regional reorganization we intend to further build on our already strong business momentum across the overall geography. Both Ling Hai and Ari have a strong and successful track record in MasterCard and we look forward to them leading the next wave of growth for us.

Ling Hai, who joined MasterCard in 2010 as Division President of Greater China, was most recently Group Executive of Enterprise Development, International Markets for MasterCard. He has over 22 years’ industry experience, including in financial services and consulting, across a number of markets.

Ari Sarker has been with MasterCard for over four years and was most recently MasterCard’s Division President for South Asia and Country Corporate Officer, India. He also has over 22 years of experience spanning the finance, commercial, and M&A sectors in senior management roles across key markets in the Americas, Europe and Asia Pacific.

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