Raghu Malhotra is the president of Mastercard Middle East and Africa and sits on the company’s global management committee. He is responsible for driving the company’s global strategy across 69 markets and has led its transition to being a pioneer in bringing new electronic payment solutions and services to the region, spanning safety, security, data, artificial intelligence – and helping advance social progress and inclusive growth.
Under his leadership, Mastercard has expanded its collaboration with central governments and public sector authorities, partnering to enhance the region’s infrastructure and digital ecosystem.
This includes developing a number of technology ‘global-firsts’ that are impacting the lives of millions of people: empowering citizens and businesses by creating interoperable mobile ecosystems; launching lending platforms which digitize and revolutionize supply chain management; bringing new levels of security to online and in-store purchases and introducing new energy and agriculture digital solutions to enable greater access and financial inclusion.
Malhotra has held a number of senior leadership roles at Mastercard, encompassing multiple geographies and functions. Prior to joining the company, he served in a variety of roles at Citicorp, American Express and ANZ Grindlays Bank.
Malhotra is a member of the US President’s Advisory Council on Doing Business in Africa and the Dubai Chamber of Commerce & Industry International Advisory Council. He sits on the board of directors of the US-Africa Business Centre US Chamber of Commerce and INJAZ. He also sits on the board of directors of Network International and is a member of the World Economic Forum Africa Business Council.
He holds an honors degree in Commerce and an MBA and is an alumnus of the University of Delhi, University of Melbourne and Harvard Business School.
What is the biggest leadership lesson you learned in 2020 amid the pandemic?
The year 2020 called for powerful, calm and transparent leadership. At Mastercard, it meant striking the delicate balance between staying focussed on the long-term business priorities, whilst being agile in reacting to the constantly evolving situation and pivoting to assure and support our people, diversify our revenue, and adapt to the new working environment.
In crisis, the hardest things can be the softest things. One of the biggest lessons I learned – as every leader during this unprecedented time – was how to carry people with us, through tough times, with transparency. And sometimes, what is required is beyond the sphere and scope of what that leaders can control. But transparency means that everyone has an opportunity to be together on the same page, and together teams are stronger.
And doing this, whilst rapidly evolving our busines strategy to continue to support our customers and partners and unlock new revenue streams. At Mastercard, we have always been led by a solid, long-term business strategy. This strategy ensured we had a strong foundation and pipeline when the pandemic hit, and gave us the room to quickly apart to the new environment, diversify our business and deliver innovative solutions that meet the constantly evolving needs of the customers and our industry.
What is the biggest opportunity for this region over the next five years?
In most of the Middle East, agile and forward-looking policies have resulted in significant strides towards cashless and seamless economies. From robust ID systems to advanced healthcare and mobility solutions, major economies in the region are embracing the latest technologies and leveraging them to transform commerce and industries.
The GCC, for example, has the highest adoption of digital payments and contributes 60 percent of GDP in the Middle East, even though it only has 20 percent of the total population. As the economy continues to recover and diversify, the biggest opportunity is in unlocking the potential of small and medium sized businesses, and integrating the SME sector into the digital economy.
SMEs are the engine of economic prosperity. In the UAE alone, the SME sector represents more than 98 percent of the total number of companies and contributes 52 percent of non-oil GDP. It is also a fact that that the SME sector was one of the hardest hit during the pandemic, specifically female-managed businesses.
This is why Mastercard has made the commitment to include 50 million SMEs into the digital economy by 2025, with a direct focus on 25 million women entrepreneurs. When SMEs thrive, we all thrive, and this must be a key priority if we are going to achieve a truly inclusive economy for all.
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