Navigating the complexities of today’s global economy demands more than just innovative technology, it requires a vision that transcends traditional boundaries of commerce and finance.
Mastercard, a global technology company in the payments space, embodies this forward-thinking approach to redefine the essence of digital transactions. With a commitment to driving financial inclusion, sustainability and economic empowerment, Mastercard is not merely facilitating payments but actively transforming the digital economy.
As the company continues to lead the charge in the digital payments space, Amnah Ajmal, Executive Vice President for Market Development in EEMEA, sheds light on the company’s pivotal role in fostering innovation, sustainability and financial inclusion. She also delves into the strategies and insights behind Mastercard’s mission to empower economies and connect the world with unparalleled efficiency and security.
Ajmal began the conversation by highlighting the change the world has witnessed over the last three or four years. The regulatory landscape, customer expectations and technology are rapidly evolving, and she sees these changes as a massive opportunity to drive diversification for Mastercard’s clients and the business.
“Today, non-financial institutions are offering financial services. Their strategy is to leverage the data, trust and distribution they have to diversify their business. At Mastercard, we enable these customers by being a one-stop technology shop.”
She stated that the objective is clear: to enable organisations across diverse sectors to get closer to their customers, offer more services and digitalise supply chains.
“We collaborate with multiple fintech companies to co-create simple, intuitive solutions about more than just facilitating transactions. Such synergies are at the heart of the development of wide-reaching service platforms, as they reduce operational costs and bring together varied expertise,” she said.
One of the most critical challenges fintech companies face is ensuring payment security, and this is one of the key areas where Mastercard has deep expertise.
Opportunities are huge. In most parts of the region, a significant amount of payments are still made in cash. Digitising cash is a massive opportunity that brings millions into financial services.
With a keen focus on listening to pain points and leveraging the entity’s network, Ajmal and her team are crafting digital transformation plans that resonate deeply with the needs of various stakeholders. “Choice, personalisation and seamless interaction are just the start,” she noted, underlining the importance of strategic collaboration in nurturing innovation and digital transformation.
Ajmal explains how more companies outside of traditional finance turn their attention to payments to drive engagement and loyalty—with a focus on creating personalised customer experiences.
“Smart technologies offer unparalleled levels of customer service and elevate the user experience to new heights—in both physical, virtual and phygital worlds. AI and 5G are advancing our problem-solving skills on a daily basis—and we are innovating on a daily basis to build these advances into our industry-proven solutions.”
Mastercard’s strategic partnership with e& is a great example of how the company’s technology and expertise can take consumer engagement to new heights.
“First as the Emirates’ telephone company, and now as the technology and investment group, e& is forging an ambitious digital transformation journey, and we are supporting them by integrating digital payment services in a way that adds value and enhances user-friendliness in 16 markets,” Ajmal adds.
She highlighted how Mastercard collaborates with the private sector to co-create solutions and offer access to its network of partners, expertise, technologies and markets.
However, she pointed out that the brand’s strategy extends beyond the private sector, aiming to bridge the digital divide by connecting more people and businesses to the digital economy. This initiative is pivotal in stimulating economic activity and building sustainable communities.
Mastercard has pledged to bring one billion people and 50 million micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) worldwide into the digital economy to advance financial inclusion by 2025.
“An integral part of this objective was equipping 25 million women entrepreneurs with the tools and resources they need to grow their businesses. I am proud to share that we achieved this global milestone in June 2023—two years ahead of our target date.”
Ajmal spoke about how when everyone has access to financial services, everyone can build wealth and a secure future by saving, investing, accessing loans, getting insurance and transacting digitally.
Recently, Mastercard partnered with MTN Group Fintech to connect millions of people and small businesses across Africa with digital tools to transact through secure mobile payments, expanding access to the benefits of the cashless digital economy.
When asked about forming new partnerships in the Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa (EEMEA) region, she stressed the importance of understanding and engagement.
“A deep understanding of the relevant pain points, the existing capabilities, the ambition, the local landscape and meaningful engagement models are all important when developing strategies. In many markets across EEMEA, payment tech partnerships are essential for building secure platform solutions that serve unbanked consumers and merchants and make them more accessible.
“The evolution of payment technology has made paying bills and making purchases faster, easier and more secure,” she explained, pointing out that with digital payments on the rise—projected to grow into a $3 trillion industry by 2026—the focus is on making transactions faster, easier and more secure.
Mastercard’s innovations, such as Cross-Border Services, exemplify this by facilitating the movement of funds to any endpoint across 180 countries through a secure connection, essentially reaching 90% of the world’s banked population.
Technology is at a crossroads
Having worked in the US, Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa, Ajmal identifies a common growth factor—people.
“We have to establish trust with our clients so they can share with us their strategy and vision. This helps us prioritise what matters. For example, if a client shares their strategy of entering into a marketplace for data monetisation we will not only consider the technology and platforms required to build the marketplace but also the safety and security assets that we can deploy to future proof the business.”
We continue to tap into new technologies to develop new value propositions that are personalised and contextual, shaping the future of commerce, solving real problems for businesses and making people’s lives easier
Amnah Ajmal, Executive Vice President, Market Development, EEMEA at Mastercard
The fintech sector in EEMEA stands at the crossroads of opportunity and challenge, striving to meet consumers’ demands for convenience, security and efficiency. Ajmal views these demands as the driving force behind fintech innovation but acknowledges the critical need for robust payment security.
She explained, “They have the appetite to drive diversification into new service offerings and bring competitive new solutions to market. But they also need partners with complementary capabilities to do this. One of the most critical challenges fintech companies face is ensuring payment security, and this is one of the key areas where Mastercard has deep expertise.
Commitment to sustainability and inclusivity
Mastercard’s commitment to digital payment innovation revolutionises how transactions are conducted and pave the way for a more sustainable and inclusive future.
Ajmal discussed Mastercard’s commitment to environmental sustainability, emphasising the company’s efforts to lessen its environmental footprint and encourage eco-friendly practices among partners and customers. She underlined the company’s ambitious target to reach net-zero emissions within its operations by 2040. Moreover, Mastercard aims to lead the global payments sector in integrating reductions in supply chain emissions into its overall net-zero objectives.
Innovative solutions like introducing cards made from 100% recycled or bio-sourced materials by 2028 and founding the Priceless Planet Coalition, which unifies corporate efforts to restore 100 million trees worldwide, illustrate Mastercard’s proactive stance on environmental conservation.
Ajmal shared these initiatives and the brand’s collaboration with CarbonSifr—a UAE-based climate tech company to equip SMEs in the MENA region with innovative tools to measure, reduce and offset their carbon footprint—underscoring the importance of fostering environmentally conscious consumer behaviour.
As the company strives to reduce its environmental footprint, it equally focuses on dismantling financial barriers for underserved communities, according to Ajmal.
“Empowering female-led businesses remains a key focus area for Mastercard and me personally. To celebrate women entrepreneurs across EEMEA shaping the region’s future, we launched the Mastercard Women SME Leaders Awards in 2022, opening nominations for several categories across diverse sectors—from technology to agriculture, from retail to real estate.
“Last year, we partnered with the international organisation, Women Choice, to establish the Social Innovation Incubator for Women’s Employment. Together, we seek to create one million jobs for women across the MENA region in the next five years,” she elaborated.
Along the same lines, she advised aspiring leaders, particularly women looking to make their mark in fintech or any other niche in banking, to believe in themselves and not let the doubters win. Her counsel is a testament to her journey, advocating for self-assessment, vocalising needs and embracing every learning opportunity.
“Be bold and persevere,” she advises, embodying the very principles that have guided her successful career.
On inclusivity, Mastercard introduced the world’s first-ever Touch Card in the UAE in collaboration with Ajman Bank. The innovative solution facilitates payments for blind and partially sighted people by allowing them to easily distinguish between their payment cards with just a touch. Since then, Saudi National Bank has followed suit, bringing the Touch Card to Saudi Arabia.
A vision for the future
As the digital payments landscape continues to evolve, Mastercard stands at the forefront, addressing key industry challenges with a strategic mix of innovation, security and collaboration.
“We are securing the entire payments ecosystem with end-to-end encryption, tokenisation and authentication,” she explained, highlighting the company’s commitment to protecting every transaction.
“In this context, we have acquired several companies with industry-leading capabilities that enable us to enhance our cybersecurity offerings, such as Brighterion, RiskRecon and NuData,” she revealed.
Ajmal also asserted that rather than viewing the rise of fintech startups and disruptive technologies as a competitive threat, Mastercard sees a valuable opportunity for strategic partnerships.
“Many fintech services and products create enhanced competitiveness and have a real impact on consumers and small businesses and this fintech innovation is creating more connections and better user experiences. As an experience-centric company, we support this creative disruption,” she added.
Furthermore, she disclosed that Mastercard is actively engaging with emerging innovators by partnering with Start Path and Fintech Express, providing them with essential tools and resources to bring their transformative ideas to life.
According to Ajmal, Mastercard’s strategic priorities in the EEMEA region and beyond are clear. She outlines the company’s pillars: driving innovation, expanding inclusion and building trust, which will continue to guide Mastercard’s efforts to empower economies and individuals alike.
In conclusion, she said, “In the coming years, I see us continuing our journey of powering economies and empowering people. I envision us achieving our global financial inclusion goals and setting new ones, driving the adoption of digital payments and accelerating digital transformation in the markets we serve.”
