Veteran banker Rajnish Kumar appointed as Chairman of Mastercard India

Rajnish Kumar, former chairman, State Bank of India (SBI)

Former State Bank of India (SBI) Chairman Rajnish Kumar has been appointed as chairman of Mastercard India on September 14.

According to a press statement from Mastercard India, "...in this critical, non-executive advisory role, Kumar will guide Mastercard’s South Asia executive leadership team led by Gautam Aggarwal, Division President for South Asia & Country Corporate Officer, India, in navigating the domestic payments landscape."

“Under Kumar’s invaluable stewardship, Mastercard will seek to further digital payments adoption and acceptance in the market and continue to actively support the government’s Digital India vision in innovative and impactful ways," said Ari Sarker, President, Asia Pacific, Mastercard.

Rajnish Kumar said in the statement that he is keenly looking forward to sharing his knowledge, experience, and expertise with Mastercard as the company becomes an even more deeply embedded player and strategic partner to organizations across the public and private sectors in India.

Kumar serves as the chairman at the Board of Indian fintech company BharatPe and holds several directorships, including seats on the boards of many institutions and corporates like HSBC Asia Pacific, L&T, and Brookfield Property Management.

He also chairs the Board of Governors of management institute MDI, Gurgaon.

"With its relentless focus on partnering for progress and driving prosperity through inclusive growth, Mastercard has the technologies, capabilities, resources, and heart to contribute greatly to India’s vibrant payments technology landscape," Kumar added.