Nandan is the Chief Executive Officer of the Group, working closely with the Chairman and Board members to set strategic expansion goals for the organisation and lead the Executive Management Team in the accomplishment of these objectives. He also serves as Chairman/Director of Network International subsidiary companies for the Middle East and Africa. Nandan holds a strong background in payments, consumer finance and corporate banking with a deep understanding of the Middle East and Africa as well as experience in India, Czech Republic, Israel, Russia and UK markets. His more than 30-year track record of successfully building and growing businesses to profitable scale and dominant market share spans several markets globally, at leading financial institutions including American Express, Citigroup, United Bank for Africa (UBA) and most recently at Mastercard. During his 11-year career at Mastercard, Nandan was Strategy Head for International Markets, President for the Japanese business and Head of Global Consumer Credit and Loyalty Solutions. Prior to that, Nandan was Head of UBA - International Corporate and Investment Banking. Before UBA, he built and led consumer banking businesses for two decades with Citigroup in India, the Czech Republic, Israel, Russia and the UK. Nandan began his career at American Express Cards. Nandan holds an MBA in Finance from the University of Massachusetts and a Bachelor’s Degree in Business from the University of Delhi. When not passionately engaged in business building, he enjoys playing golf and tennis.

Malek Mroueh has over 30 years of experience in the card and payments industry and has undertaken a number of leadership roles throughout his career. He has an in-depth knowledge of global payment landscapes and has lived and worked in the European, Middle East and South East Asian regions. Malek is the Regional General Manager of Asia, Middle East and Africa at TSYS. In his role, Malek is responsible for revenue, growth, client success and engagement with stakeholders in the broader payments ecosystem for the Issuer business. Over the years, Malek has worked across several fields in payments, including payment solution design, market development and payment cards consulting. He also has extensive knowledge of digital payment channels and frequently represents TSYS as a passionate speaker at international conferences and events. His personal interests include financial inclusion, embedded finance and the application of blockchain technologies. Malek holds an M.Eng and B.Eng in Microelectronics from Middlesex University in the UK and is currently based out of Dubai.

Saud Swar is the Chief Business Officer for the Middle East & North Africa and the General Manager of UAE for American Express Middle East. As part of his role, Saud is responsible for the growth of the AEME market share of consumer, corporate and merchant partners across the regional markets, manage the existing customer portfolio across the region and manage the country operations across the region. Additionally, Saud is responsible for the UAE operations including key relationships with relevant government and regulatory bodies. Since joining American Express Middle East, Saud has played an instrumental role in both consumer and corporate business teams with hands-on experience in team leadership, sales, marketing, customer management and business operations. Prior to his current role, Saud led the corporate business in the region, driving profitable growth for AEME corporate payment solutions business by growing and retaining existing corporate relationships and acquiring new corporate customers. He also worked on enhancing and introducing new corporate payment solutions and managing the corporate customer marketing. Saud holds a master’s degree in Business Administration from the London Business School, in addition to an International Diploma in Management & Leadership from the Chartered Management Institute in the UK, and a bachelor’s degree in Computer Engineering.

Will Cross is Director of Partnerships in Eastern Europe the Middle East and Africa, based in the UK. In this role, Will has responsibility for DGN relationships with Network Alliances, Issuers and Acquirers across the region, ensuring that DGN continues to drive the growth of its network business. Will has 30 years of experience in the Payments industry, proven in all aspects of planning, execution and implementation of business strategies in international markets with broad experience from working across schemes and issuers, within product, marketing and business development areas. A strong track record of negotiating, signing and implementing new partners, and expanding existing business relationships with Discover, MasterCard and Morgan Stanley.

Based in Dubai, Nadia is responsible for developing end to end payment solutions across all of Mastercard products & services and ensuring successful implementation for East Arabia markets: UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman and Pakistan market. With a prior experience in consulting (Monitor Deloitte), and within the Public sector (Advisors to Morocco minister of Digital economy), Nadia joined Mastercard in August 2016 as Advisors Business Development Lead for North and Francophone Africa where she drove exponential revenue growth year over year and overseen structural projects delivery for Tier 1 banks in Morocco Tunisia, Libya, Cape Verde, Ivory Coast & Gabon. She then took over the role of Qatar, Kuwait, Oman and Iraq country manager. Nadia graduated Em Lyon Business School- France- in 2008 with a master’s in management. Nadia is happily married and mother of 3. She is a fitness enthusiast (HIIT, Cycling), Travel addict and criminology aficionado. 

Devendar Agarwal is Vice President and GCC Head of Merchant Sales and Acquiring business at Visa. His role involves spearheading the growth and management of digital payment acceptance and merchant business across the GCC. His partners span various sectors, including travel, retail, ecommerce, acquirers and Payfacs. Devendar's background is rich and varied, with extensive experience in the payment card industry, product and portfolio management, and customer relationship management. Before his current role, he led Visa’s Co-brand business across the Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East, and Africa region. Devendar's career history also includes various roles at Citi in strategy, finance, credit risk, and product in the UAE, U.K, Germany, Russia, and the Philippines. He also provided consultancy services to Citi businesses in South Korea, Colombia, and Brazil. His final role at Citi involved leading the Credit Cards, Loans, and Mortgages business across the Middle East and North Africa. Devendar's academic credentials include a master’s degree in business administration from the National University of Singapore, specializing in strategy from Cornell University. He also earned a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from MNIT, India. He currently resides in Dubai with his family.

Jossan Maalouf serves as Head of Middle East and Africa (MEA) region at Fiserv. In this role, Jossan drives the strategy, planning and execution of Fiserv MEA business out of Fiserv Dubai Office. Since Dec 2022, Jossan is also Head of FI Origination for Europe Middle East & Africa covering Issuer processing and Merchant acquiring processing services to new Fiserv banking clients in the EMEA region. Fiserv is the world’s leading entity in Financial Technology with 41,000 employees globally and $17.7 billion of revenues in 2022. We serve thousands of banks, financial Institutions and millions of merchants worldwide with our next-generation commerce-enabling solutions. Jossan joined Fiserv in March 2020 from JPMorgan, where he was based in Beirut for 7 years and served as General Manager for the Levant region and Head of Transactional Banking for Levant, Turkey, Azerbaijan and Georgia. Again with JPMorgan, Jossan was previously based in Bahrain for 4 years, where he was Head of Global Trade for the Levant region, Bahrain and Algeria.  Jossan graduated as an Architect from the Lebanese American University and decided to move into Banking after two years in the construction business and after completing his MBA at ESCP France (Ecole Supérieure de Commerce de Paris). Jossan has over 20 years of banking and financial technology experience mostly spent in Kuwait, Bahrain, Lebanon and UAE. He is married with three sons and lives in Dubai.

Imane Adel is a distinguished global leader, strategic advisor, and angel investor with over 15 years of experience spanning technology, payments, fintech, and blockchain. She has held pivotal roles at Visa, Mastercard, Yahoo, and leading fintech organizations, shaping the digital landscape through innovation, revenue growth, and strategic partnerships. In addition to her executive background, she serves on several boards, guiding organizations toward scalable growth and transformative impact. Imane advises large global and regional enterprises, as well as high-potential startups on blockchain, technology, strategy, and expansion, enabling them to navigate rapidly evolving markets. A sought-after speaker at numerous regional and global events, she shares her thought leadership in publications such as Forbes, Entrepreneur Magazine, and Fintech Times. Known for driving scale and delivering impact, she is an active angel investor who mentors emerging ventures via platforms including the Abu Dhabi SME Hub, DIFC Innovation Hub, Ignyte and FRWRDx. Alongside her advisory work, she serves as Co-Chair of the Payments Working Group at the MENA Fintech Association (MFTA), shaping the future of technology and innovation in the region. She holds a Master of Science in Strategic Planning from Edinburgh Business School and a Bachelor of Business Administration from the American University in Cairo. Dedicated to continuous learning, Imane has earned blockchain-focused certificates from INSEAD and the University of Pennsylvania, ensuring she remains at the forefront of innovation. She is also certified in Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) and is fluent in Arabic, English, French, Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese—allowing her to connect seamlessly with diverse global audiences.

Christiane El Habre , Regional Managing Director – Middle East - Apex Group brings over two decades of experience in the UAE financial services industry, managing high level of local and international business, banking relations and negotiating complex deals and contracts establishing corporate vision, strategic operational planning, re-engineering operations & process improvement. Christiane Joined Apex Group from international management consultancy Elkho Group where she was Partner, Chair of the Board and CEO of Middle East. Previously she served as Managing Director at EFG Bank Monaco, and founder of FFA Private Bank (Dubai) in 2006 in DIFC, the first Lebanese specialized investment bank to have a subsidiary in Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), where she was CEO and executive board member in 2011. During her tenure Christiane served as a Board member of all the funds established by the Bank. Prior to joining FFA Private Bank Dubai, Christiane held senior positions in Gap Corp in Dubai, and she spent 5 years in FFA Private Bank in Lebanon, as the Head of Treasury and Operations. Christiane is a highly recognized member in the Finance /Wealth Management Business and also serves on boards of several nonprofits, where she is committed to mentoring and coaching young professionals in the finance industry, as well as providing scholarships for students to pursue a career in Finance. She is also an ambassador for Jobs For Lebanon since 2020 She is a regular speaker at International financial forums, addressing current practical banking practices and is a known figure for addressing women empowerment matters in the region. Christiane graduated from St Joseph University (USJ) in Beirut with a degree in Finance, she completed further education from IE business school in High Impact Leadership, and from the Oxford University in advanced FinTech.

Gavin Dein is a British philanthropist and multi-award-winning entrepreneur. He was the founder and CEO of Reward, a global customer engagement and loyalty platform for banks and payment schemes, operating in 15 countries across three continents. In 2024, Experian PLC, the world’s largest credit bureau, invested in Reward, and Gavin transitioned to the role of Deputy Chairman. Over the past 12 years, he has chaired boards at the NSPCC and is a member of the IC. Gavin resides in Dubai with his French wife and two children.  

Mark Rennie Davis is a payments strategy advisor and entrepreneur. In 2017 he founded Advistic, a boutique consultancy and advisory business based in the UAE, focused on the Middle East and working across industry sectors including fintech, government, banking and retail. Advistic also advises private and institutional investors on payment industry opportunities across the region. Prior to this role, Mark held senior positions at Mastercard Advisors in London, Singapore and New York, working with clients in over 25 countries. Mark has been based in the UAE for the last 10 years.

Francesco Burelli is a Partner at Arkwright Consulting AG, bringing over 23 years of corporate and product strategy experience in retail and corporate payments, distribution channels, open banking, embedded finance, cross-industry platforms, superapps, and ecosystems. Before his consulting career, Francesco worked at Midland Bank, later HSBC. His advisory experience spans across EMEA, APAC, NA, and LA. A Fellow of the London Institute of Banking & Finance and an INSEAD alumnus, Francesco also serves as a Learning Coach with INSEAD Executive Education for Strategy, Digital Transformation, AI and Innovation programmes.

Andrew is an experienced executive in the payments industry, having spent over 25 years in leadership roles with organisations such as Barclaycard, Mastercard, Elavon and Network International. His experience has taken him from the UK, into Europe, and for the last 8 years operating in the Middle East and Africa. After a successful corporate career he has now moved into the world of start-ups, investing in and advising several businesses, whilst dedicating himself to Enza, a business he has formed with former colleagues to support Africa’s banks in liberating the world of commerce.

Simon is CEO & founder of findexable – the global index for benchmarking digital finance innovation across advanced and high growth markets, and home to the Global Fintech Index. findexable makes it easier to benchmark fintech activity by powering real-time insight on global innovation ecosystems that’s used by multinational firms and investors to support strategic decision-making. Simon is a regular public speaker, moderator and writer on growth markets, digital innovation and tech ecosystem development. He has over two decades of experience supporting the growth of digital ecosystems and using insight to build meaningful connections between investors, institutions, and innovators through his work as writer and editor for global intelligence brands including The Economist, Euromoney Institutional Investor, Thomson Reuters, and Global Data. He was previously a director of market research, events and data business Global Data PLC before setting up findexable in response to growing customer demand for a more robust way to benchmark ecosystem and digital finance innovation. His work across insight and analytics across the world of innovation, investment, emerging ecosystems and digital finance has taken him to every corner of the globe – advising central banks, government, institutions and scaling tech businesses on the best course to build thriving digital ecosystems that deliver real world value.