Cover story: Mastercard’s Dimitrios Dosis talks strategy and innovation

Leading a region as diverse as Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa (EEMEA) is a role for someone bold, decisive and interested in how differences can add value and create advantage for the many, rather than the few.

The region is also home to 41 of the world’s 100 fastest-growing economies, so you need a leader who gets things done at speed, without compromising on standards.
Dimitrios Dosis is that person – overseeing 81 of Mastercard’s 210 markets, as president.

The EEMEA region has emerged as a focal point for Mastercard’s global innovation, digital transformation and financial inclusion efforts in recent years. Today, this melting pot serves as a launchpad for deploying strategic partnerships, non-traditional collaborations, and new business models in the payments industry across Mastercard’s extensive global network.

EEMEA payments landscape

The EEMEA payments industry has demonstrated resilience in 2022, with the economic downturn, high inflation and soaring interest rates altering consumer and business behaviour and, consequently, payments dynamics.

Changes in the payments space are creating new opportunities for service providers in the region to develop new solutions and claim market share. EEMEA is certainly a diverse region, and that very diversity generates some of the most exciting opportunities.

The region is home to a young population, which goes hand-in-hand with an appetite for exploring new innovations and often, a high degree of tech savviness. Dosis says the youth segment in the EEMEA region offers a massive opportunity, not just for Mastercard, but for everyone. “This is where progress can make an impact swiftly. It’s where the momentum starts,” he adds.

“Technology is evolving at a rapid speed, and our region is well on its way to becoming one of the most digitally connected in the world,” says Dosis. Still, the individual markets are quite different, and this is where localisation and tailor-made solutions can make the difference.

Dosis highlights that pulling standard solutions off a global shelf doesn’t cut it. However, being present in the markets where customers are, listening to pain points, understanding user journeys and being open to co-creating solutions, are essential, he says.

According to Mastercard New Payments Index 2022: Consumers in MENA Embrace Digital Payments report, 85 per cent of people in the MENA have used at least one emerging payment method, 64 per cent increased their use of digital payment methods and 19 per cent used less cash in 2021.

Of course, where there are opportunities there are also challenges. Dosis sees geopolitical tensions, rising nationalism, healthcare concerns, inflation, supply chain issues, and rising climate change worries having widespread implications across the EEMEA region.

The fact remains that there will always be challenges, but Mastercard is leveraging the power of technology to prepare for the challenges while enabling collaboration across the ecosystem to position for mutual growth ahead.

Productive collaborations

Collaboration and innovation are at the heart of Mastercard’s progress and Dosis says the company places a strategic focus on the importance of partnerships with both private and public sectors, across industries.

These partnerships include Mastercard’s alliance with e& in the UAE. Dosis says the technology group is forging an ambitious digital transformation journey that the payments company will support by integrating digital payment services in a way that adds value and enhances user-friendliness in 16 markets.

According to Dosis, this is where governments can also play an especially important part. “We’ve partnered with governments across the region, sharing our expertise and technology solutions to help digitise their economies and positively impact the welfare of citizens and residents.”

In Jordan, Mastercard joined hands with the Greater Amman Municipality (GAM) and Network International earlier this year to roll out the country’s first transit payment ecosystem. It will enable seamless digital payments across the GAM-operated public transport network, powered by Mastercard’s Payment Gateway Services.

Additionally, Mastercard’s other collaborations in Egypt and Saudi Arabia are great examples of how the payment solutions firm can support the development of country-wide digital ecosystems. Overall, Dosis is seeing encouraging trends across the Middle East that present a significant chance to reimagine how we can use technology and drive partnerships for the greater good.

Dosis stresses that as a trusted partner of governments, the company is collaborating on use cases such as transit, education, infrastructure, wage digitisation, welfare disbursements, bill payments via WhatsApp and the development of interoperable payment systems.

“We have been shifting from a product-centric to solution-centric organisation. In this process, Mastercard has evolved into a multi-faceted brand innovation partner with a wide range of competencies and capabilities, which are benefitting retailers, travel companies, governments, fintech startups and others,” adds Dosis.

Digital-first focus

The digital payments space had gained significant traction in the EEMEA region before the shift to the ‘digital-first’ approach that gained prominence after the outbreak of the pandemic three years ago.

According to Dosis on the one hand there is the ongoing acceleration in technology and on the other there’s the fact that customers want choice.

Blockchain technology is democratising finance while data analytics are adding insights that are informing business decisions with greater precision.

“Mastercard’s multi-rail strategy is the way we approach this and the way we make sure we transfer value in new ways beyond a card. We do this by advancing capabilities such as e-commerce, QR codes, account-to-account transactions, B2B payments, click-to-pay and buy-now-pay-later solutions,” says Dosis.

Cross-border remittances are especially important in the Middle East to keep people connected and communities supported. Today, Mastercard’s cross-border services connect 90 per cent of the world’s population via bank accounts, digital wallets, cards and cash agents.

Mastercard remains committed to leveraging innovative technologies to develop new value propositions that are personalised and contextual, shaping the future of commerce, solving real problems and making people’s lives easier.

Focused on inclusion

Besides their technical benefits, digital payments are key enablers of economic growth and financial inclusion.

“These days, when we talk about the economy, it’s increasingly a reference to the digital economy, as this is where value is being moved. As a result, digital inclusion is necessary for financial inclusion,” asserts Dosis, adding that financial inclusion is critical because it’s an essential step towards financial security.

As a responsible company, Mastercard is intricately aware that technology needs to be directed in the right ways so everyone can benefit from it, not just a few. When it supports financial inclusion, it drives scale and generates shared growth, ultimately leading to financial security for more people. That’s why the company pledged to bring one billion people globally into the digital economy by 2025.

Mastercard has been working to bridge the financial inclusion gap through a broad range of efforts, including partnerships with telecommunications companies, ongoing work on government disbursement solutions, wage digitisation of private sector workers and scaling efforts with mobile network providers via their digital platforms and digital wallets.

Given the importance of small businesses to both economic growth and community welfare, Dosis says the company unveiled its ambitious plan to connect 50 million SMEs to the digital tools and insights that will enable them to grow nearly three years ago. Mastercard’s strategy seeks to benefit 25 million female entrepreneurs.

Small businesses are the backbone of communities and the engine of economies, which is why Mastercard is committed to empowering them with what they need to thrive.

“Bringing this commitment to life happens in many ways. Like our Tap on Phone solution, which transforms a phone into an acceptance device,” says Dosis. “Solutions such as pay-on-demand can place an affordable mobile device into the hands of those who don’t yet have a way to engage in the digital economy, especially relevant in emerging economies.

And in more mature economies of the Gulf, we focus on co-creating solutions that enable greater financial security for people and small businesses.”

Building on trust

Dosis highlights that it is great to see many countries in the region embracing the innovation that is making all sorts of things possible, including wider inclusion. However, he notes that the critical part that holds everything together is trust.

“It’s a key point on any digital transformation agenda and rightly so, because at the end of the day, you simply can’t do business without trust,” says Dosis.
The proliferation of digital payments and e-commerce over the years has led to increased cybersecurity risk exposure as cybercrime and malicious hacking cases have intensified over the past three years.

Dosis notes that cyberthreats and cyberattacks are real and global geopolitical instability elevates these risks. “It’s essential to be prepared,” he says while applauding GCC countries that have strong cybersecurity defences in place such as Saudi Arabia and the UAE – both of which rank high on the Global Cybersecurity Index.

“At Mastercard we are committed to investing in solutions and forming partnerships that instil trust, securing every transaction and every interaction. We are constantly strengthening our capabilities in artificial intelligence and machine learning to fight fraud and enhance real-time intelligence,” says Dosis.

According to recent estimates, the current worldwide cost of cybercrime is $6tn, accounting for 1 per cent of the global GDP and the estimated cost is set to rise by $4.5tn in the next few years. The use cases for artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning are everywhere, including fraud prevention.

It is predicted that AI will be worth $320bn in the Middle East by 2030. Similarly, innovations in biometrics mean one can now pay with a smile or a wave of a hand in several of Mastercard’s markets. Solutions such as Mastercard Cyber Secure, an AI-powered suite of tools, allow banks to assess the cyber risk across their ecosystem and prevent potential breaches.

Partnerships also contribute to a more secure future and Mastercard is collaborating with the Dubai Financial Services Authority’s Threat Intelligence Platform to help boost cyber resilience across the Middle East, Africa and South Asia.

For Dosis, data responsibility is a key component of creating a trusted business environment and Mastercard’s philosophy is simple. “When it comes to your data, you own it, you control it, you should benefit from it and we protect it,” he says adding that companies have a responsibility to act for the greater good as creators and guardians of safe digital networks that increase business confidence and drive trust in digital commerce.

Because cyber-breaches are largely motivated by financial gain, businesses are a major target for attacks, putting them at risk of financial loss, reputational damage and more.

Adapting to new trends

The future of payments belongs to companies that can harness the power of technology, ecosystem participation and operating model renewal to drive new value propositions. For Mastercard, successful transformation is as much about adapting as it is about diversifying.

The company’s portfolio of integrated services and solutions is generating new business, deepening customer engagement, driving loyalty, protecting digital systems, enhancing decision-making, providing insights and creating new opportunities beyond payments.

Dosis believes that plenty of choices, personalisation and seamless interaction are just the start. “Decades ago, you might have thought about Mastercard as a card company, and in more recent years as a technology company. Today, Mastercard is adding value in many places, to several stakeholders, in ways that are both unusual and imaginative.”

Take e-sports and gaming, for example. In the MENA region, the gaming industry is predicted to grow three-fold in just two years to hit the $5bn mark by 2025. It presents almost infinite potential, blending entertainment, art and commerce.

“Through a partnership with the Saudi Esports Federation, Mastercard is innovating across augmented reality activations, NFTs and fans’ loyalty solutions. Earlier this year, Saudi National Bank joined the partnership and together three entities seek to tap into Web3 technology to offer gamers the opportunity to access immersive experiences in the physical and digital world,” adds Dosis.

Incorporating ESG principles

The overall momentum for social responsibility in business, which is often characterised under the environmental, social, and governance (ESG) banner – is also changing the context for payments.

For Mastercard, making a meaningful impact not just today and tomorrow but as a continuing legacy matter. “When we look at ESG we’re thinking about how we connect the ‘why’ of what we do, in other words, our purpose, to the ‘what’ of our fundamental business strategies. You’ll often hear us talking about ‘doing well by doing good’ and that’s how we keep our ESG focus connected, activated, and aligned to our business strategy,” says Dosis.

The future of the environment is at a major inflexion point and with COP28 in the UAE this year, Dosis is expecting scaled-up action across the private and public sectors. With Mastercard’s EEMEA headquarters in the UAE, Dosis and his team plan to be a key voice and active participant in advancing change.

Reaching net zero by 2040 is a commitment that Mastercard takes seriously and Dosis is confident that the company can achieve this target. “We know we need to keep innovating together to stay on track,” says Dosis.

Mastercard established its sustainability efforts more than a decade ago with a focus on financial inclusion, data responsibility and the environment.

The company’s ESG initiatives such as Sustainable Innovation Lab, Carbon Calculator and value chain collaboration are part of this journey. In April, Mastercard announced that from 2028, all newly–produced Mastercard plastic payment cards will be made from more sustainable materials – including recycled or bio-sourced plastics.

In addition to environmental efforts, Mastercard is also leading on the front lines of financial inclusion and driving progress in gender equality.

“A growing digital economy has to be inclusive and accessible to all. Exciting innovations such as The Touch Card facilitate easy transactions for those with visual impairments and it was great to have Ajman Bank in the UAE as our first global partner,” says Dosis.

Girls4Tech, the company’s award-winning programme designed to give more girls exposure to STEM subjects, is an important project that seeks to help diversify the tech sector and expand the contributions of women.

Over 3.5 million girls across the world have benefitted from the programme so far, including in countries such as Saudi Arabia – given the programme also runs in Arabic. “We are committed to diversity, equity and inclusion. At present, we already have pay parity in place and are working towards balanced gender representation at every level.

Moving the needle on progress must be the incentive and that’s why Mastercard linked all employee bonuses to achievement of our ESG goals, sharing the responsibility, success, and recognition,” adds Dosis.

Mastercard says all these initiatives help to attract and retain key talent while encouraging stronger connections with customers, partners, investors, employees and governments. “It’s the right thing to do, and it’s also good for business,” concludes Dosis.