Mastercard has announced six senior leadership appointments across Asia Pacific, reinforcing its regional team as the company expands across AI-enabled commerce, commercial and B2B payments, and data-driven services.

Joyce Bo joined Mastercard on 3 August as Executive Vice President, Core Payments, Asia Pacific, leading the company’s core payments business across the region, including consumer products, digital platforms, acceptance and account-to-account capabilities. She joins from Ant International, where she was General Manager leading payment innovation for Alipay+, and previously spent nearly a decade in investment banking and private equity in Hong Kong with Morgan Stanley and HSBC.

Southeast Asia gets new two-division structure

In Southeast Asia, Mastercard has introduced a new two-division leadership structure, effective 1 July, to strengthen customer focus across markets with differing economic profiles and digital maturity. Beena Pothen has been appointed Division President, West Southeast Asia, covering Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand, having previously served as Country Manager for Malaysia and Brunei. Donald Ong has been appointed Division President, East Southeast Asia, covering Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines, moving from his role as Senior Vice President, Services Business Development, Asia Pacific.

The appointments round out a series of recent moves that also include Abhinav Bhatt as General Counsel, Asia Pacific; Dr Peter Robejsek as Executive Vice President, Market Development, Asia Pacific; and Paul Monnington as Division President, Australasia.

Region seen as key proving ground for commerce

“Across Asia Pacific, AI-enabled commerce, digital wallets, tokenization and new payment experiences are reshaping commerce in real time,” said Richard Wormald, President, Asia Pacific, Mastercard. “The region is home to some of the world’s most advanced digital economies, alongside some of its fastest-growing, making it one of the world’s most important proving grounds for the future of commerce.”

“These appointments are about getting closer to customers and helping them innovate with confidence in a rapidly evolving payments landscape,” Wormald said, adding that the leaders bring experience across payments, technology, financial services and markets throughout the region.