Mastercard appoints Nikhil Sahni as Division President, South Asia

By Leandra Monteiro

Mastercard today announced the appointment of Nikhil Sahni as its new Division President, South Asia & Country Corporate Officer, India, taking over from Porush Singh.  Porush Singh will be relocating to Singapore and assuming a new role within the company.

Nikhil joins Mastercard with nearly 25 years of experience across strategy, investment banking, corporate, commercial, SME, retail, branch, and government banking. In his role, he will oversee Mastercard’s operations, and position the company’s extensive suite of products, solutions and services across the sub-continent, including Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Maldives and Bhutan, in addition to India.

“Nikhil has a proven track record of consistently building domestically relevant businesses and cultivating mutually beneficial partnerships across the public and private sectors,” said Ari Sarker Co-President, Asia Pacific, Mastercard. “His extensive experience in India’s financial services sector will be instrumental for us as Mastercard continues to strategically focus on providing the technology, infrastructure and innovation needed to build a vibrant digital payment ecosystem across South Asia. Nikhil’s belief in fostering a financially inclusive and sustainable economy and his deep understanding of critical sectors such as agriculture and MSMEs will also be of tremendous benefit. I am delighted to have Nikhil on board and look forward to the next phase of our journey as a company under his stewardship.”

“I am inspired by Mastercard’s mission to power a digital payment ecosystem that benefits everyone, everywhere by making transactions safe, simple, smart and accessible. Joining a company that has deep roots in, and an even deeper commitment to, South Asia, is an exciting opportunity, especially when you consider the tremendous potential that the sub-region holds. With the considerable investments that Mastercard has already made here, the range and depth of our products and services, and our relentless focus on partnering for progress, I am confident that there is no better time than now to be in the business of delivering inclusive, sustainable, secure and connected commerce for everyone, everywhere,” said Nikhil.

Nikhil’s most recent role was as Senior Group President, Agriculture, Government & MNC Banking and Knowledge Banking with Yes Bank. He was a part of Yes Bank’s founding team, where he spent over 17 years managing various businesses and products, both at a regional and national level. Nikhil began his professional journey with L&T, after which he joined The Times Group. His other professional experience includes working with Rabo India Finance (a 100% subsidiary of Rabobank).

He is an alumnus of the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad and holds a Degree in Electrical Engineering from Punjab Engineering College, Chandigarh.