Mastercard Realigns Organizational Structure, Adds ‘Data and AI’ Group

Mastercard realigned its organizational structure to support its strategic priorities and position itself for “the next era of growth.”

The realignment centers on three teams: Core Payments; Commercial and New Payment Flows; and Services, the company said in a Tuesday (April 9) press release.

“These changes will reinforce our strategy and competitive advantage to drive long-term growth, diversify our revenue streams and differentiate our products and solutions,” Mastercard CEO Michael Miebach said in the release. “Our teams will be able to execute faster and deliver more value to our partners and customers.”

Mastercard’s Core Payments team will be led by Jorn Lambert, chief product officer, according to the release. The team will focus on core payments, products and platforms; real-time payments capabilities; and innovation in acceptance, consumer value propositions and optimization capabilities.

“Core payments are the foundation of the company, and the focus of the team will be on the delivery of seamless and secure payments,” the release said.

The company’s Commercial and New Payment Flows team will be led by Raj Seshadri, chief commercial payments officer. The team will cover commercial cards; B2B accounts payables and receivables; non-carded bill payments; remittances; disbursements; and solutions for the healthcare industry.

“Payment and data flows beyond consumer card payments represent a scalable opportunity,” the release said.

The Services team will be led by Craig Vosburg, chief services officer. It will integrate offerings from Mastercard’s current Cyber and Intelligence, Data and Services and Open Banking teams.

“Managing fraud, risk and cybersecurity and growing through insights, analytics and loyalty programs are universal needs,” the release said.

Vosburg will also oversee a newly formed Data and AI organization that will be led by Greg Ulrich, chief AI and data officer. This organization will include commercialization for both internal and external applications as well as the governance of these functions.

In addition, Ajay Bhalla will retire after more than 30 years with Mastercard.

These leadership changes are effective immediately, according to the release. Other parts of the organizational transition will be effective May 1.

During a Jan. 31 earnings call, Mastercard reported that new payment flows and digital innovations outpaced spending growth on cards. Demand has also been strong for security and authentication solutions that protect those transactions.