Mastercard appoints Nikhil Sahni as Division President SA, CCO India

Mastercard yesterday announced the appointment of Nikhil Sahni as its new Division President South Asia and Country Corporate Officer (CCO) India, taking over from Porush Singh. 

Singh will be relocating to Singapore and assuming a new role within the company. 

Sahni 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 subcontinent, including Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, the 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 Mastercard Co-President Asia Pacific Ari Sarker.

“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 Sahni.

Sahni’s most recent role was as Senior Group President, Agriculture, Government and MNC Banking and Knowledge Banking with Yes Bank. He was 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. 

Sahni 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 percent 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.