Visa has created a new dedicated regional cluster covering Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Oman as part of a strategic realignment within its Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East, and Africa operations. The move is aimed at accelerating digital payments growth while aligning more closely with national digital transformation priorities across the three markets.
As part of the restructuring, Visa has appointed Ali Bailoun as Group Country Manager for the new region. Based in Riyadh, Bailoun will oversee operations across Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Oman, bringing more than 20 years of experience in banking and payments to the role. The new structure is designed to enhance engagement with financial institutions, fintech companies, merchants, and government stakeholders.
Visa said the organisational change builds on its 40-year presence in the region and will allow the company to operate with greater agility and closer client proximity. Tareq Muhmood, Regional President for CEMEA at Visa, described the move as a key step in delivering faster innovation and sustained value in some of the region’s most dynamic digital payments markets.
The announcement follows a series of infrastructure investments by Visa, including the opening of a new office and Innovation Center in Riyadh and the hosting of the Visa Acceptance Platform on a local cloud in Saudi Arabia to support the rapid growth of e-commerce.
Supporting national cashless ambitions is a central driver of the realignment. Bailoun highlighted Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 goal of reaching 80 percent cashless transactions, noting that the Kingdom has already achieved 79 percent, reflecting the pace of digital payments adoption and transformation underway.
