Visa has announced the launch of a new regional hub bringing together Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Oman under a single organizational structure, as part of its broader growth strategy across the Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East, and Africa (CEMEA) region. The move is designed to strengthen Visa’s proximity to clients and partners while supporting national digital transformation agendas across the three markets.
The new regional organization builds on Visa’s more than 40-year presence in the Middle East and aims to enhance collaboration with financial institutions, fintechs, merchants, and government stakeholders. By operating under a unified regional hub, Visa plans to accelerate the adoption of cashless payments, enable innovation at scale, and contribute more directly to economic development across Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Oman.
Ali Bailoun has been appointed as Group Country Manager to lead the new hub from Riyadh. Over the past year, Visa has deepened its footprint in Saudi Arabia with the launch of a state-of-the-art office in Riyadh, including an Innovation Center focused on co-creating next-generation payment solutions. The company has also rolled out the Visa Acceptance Platform on local cloud infrastructure to support the rapid growth of eCommerce in the Kingdom.
Bailoun brings over two decades of experience in payments, banking, and management, and since joining Visa in 2012, he has played a key role in advancing digital transformation initiatives aligned with Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030.
Visa said the new regional hub reflects its CEMEA-wide strategy to improve agility, increase client proximity, and deliver greater value to consumers, businesses, and economies. The initiative is expected to strengthen secure, seamless, and cashless payment experiences across the three countries while supporting long-term innovation and economic growth
