Card Scheme Team Lead

Senior payments professional with 5+ years of experience in card schemes and acquiring with a strong focus on building and strengthening strategic partnerships with global card schemes (Visa, Mastercard, UPI, Discover, etc.).

Proven ability not only to ensure compliance, technical and operational excellence, but also to actively develop relationships, increase company visibility, and position the business as a trusted and proactive partner within the card scheme ecosystem (MasterCard & Visa and other).

Experienced in representing the company in external engagements, driving collaborative
initiatives, and aligning internal strategy with scheme priorities.   Fluent English – must.  

Responsibilities:

           1. Card Scheme Relationship Development & Representation

Act as a key relationship owner for major card schemes, strengthening long-term partnerships beyond operational

Drive initiatives to increase visibility of the company within Visa, Mastercard and other schemes

Proactively engage with scheme representatives to identify collaboration opportunities and strategic initiatives

 Represent the company in external meetings, workshops, and scheme events, ensuring strong brand positioning

Build trust-based relationships to facilitate smoother approvals, waivers, and support from schemes

 Identify opportunities for participation in:
1. pilot programs
2. scheme-led initiatives
3. innovation projects


2. Scheme Project Management

Serve as the primary liaison with global card schemes and payments-related partners, managing day-to-day tasks and ongoing communication

To lead and coordinate implementation projects involving card schemes, ensuring alignment across teams on a global basis

Develop and maintain policies, procedures, and control frameworks to ensure ongoing adherence to card scheme regulations and industry standards

Engage regularly with internal stakeholders to translate scheme requirements into practical solutions

Provide guidance and ongoing assistance to internal teams, including Underwriting, Account Management, PSP, Processing around Card Scheme rules and requirements

Effectively document business/technical requirements and understand operational processes

This is a dynamic, cross-functional, and key role in working with some of the key payment schemes such as Visa, MasterCard, China Union Pay, JCB, American Express, Discover, and other local smaller nimble players.

           3. Scheme Mandates & Compliance

Monitor Bulletins, Mandatory Changes, and Global Releases

Ensure timely implementation of scheme requirements across teams

Translate scheme rules into internal processes and technical requirements

Maintain internal policies, procedures, and control frameworks

Support ongoing and targeted compliance monitoring against Card Scheme rules

Ensure ongoing compliance with card scheme mandates, proactively managing risks and securing waivers when deadlines cannot be met

Respond to non-compliance notifications raised by Card Schemes

          4. Automation (AI) of Scheme Processes

Design and implement automation for:
a. mandate tracking
b. impact assessment
c. ticket creation and routing

Reduce manual workload in:
d. compliance monitoring
e. reporting
f. certification tracking

Develop internal tools:
o AI assistants for scheme documentation
o Smart search across Visa/Mastercard and other rules

         5. Certification & Product Launches

Lead end-to-end certification:
o Acquiring & Issuing card products
o 3DS / tokenization
o Apple Pay / Google Pay

Coordinate processors, vendors, and scheme stakeholders

Requirements:

5+ years of experience with Card Schemes, Merchant Acquiring, PSP

Strong knowledge of Visa/Mastercard rules, with specific experience in Card Not Present Payments

Proven ability to navigate Card Scheme relationships and compliance issues

Ability to convince colleagues and stress the importance of compliance requirements to protect our brand

Solid communication skills, specifically you will be able to connect with a variety of internal and external stakeholders and merchants from varying disciplines and cultures

Exceptional organizational and time-management skills

Ability to manage multiple projects and tasks in parallel, with high attention todeadlines

Comfortable working in fast-paced, high-demand environments; ability to remain calm and deliver results under pressure

Strong written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to draft formal correspondence

Proactive mindset - ability to identify issues before they arise and take initiative

Strong and effective leadership skills and ability to operate comfortably and independently within a complex cultural, global environment

Professional fluency in English (written and spoken); other languages are an advantage