From Follower To First Mover: Mastercard's Saud Swar On The MENA’s Innovation Drive
“No longer… is the region following. In many instances, we are leading, and we are the first to market. That, by itself, shows you the appetite this region has for innovation.”
As Mastercard’s Country Manager for Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Jordan and other Levant markets, Saud Swar is steering the global payments leader’s growth in a region that's being increasingly defined by rapid transformation.
Speaking with Inc. Arabia on the sidelines of this year’s Money20/20 Middle East, Swar pointed to how the vision and leadership in the region, especially in markets like Saudi Arabia, have created fertile ground for innovation.
“Over the past few years, we have been operating under a fantastic leadership that has the right vision and the right attitude towards business,” Swar said. “And this, by itself, has opened a number of opportunities for all of us here, as local players or as global players, to build on, invest, and beyond that, innovate.”
It’s a dynamic, Swar added, that is also pushing the region from being a follower in the global innovation landscape, to becoming a first mover. “No longer… is the region following,” Swar said. “In many instances, we are leading, and we are the first to market. That, by itself, shows you the appetite this region has for innovation.”
More of Swar’s insights in the full video.
Read More: Leading The Charge: Mastercard’s J.K. Khalil
