Paytm (One97 Communications), the mobile-payments firm has appointed Ramana Kumar as chief executive officer for the Middle East.
Kumar moves from Magnati, a payments subsidiary of First Abu Dhabi Bank, where he was the founding CEO working out of Abu Dhabi for four years.
An alumnus of the National Institute of Technology, Durgapur, Kumar has also completed an MBA from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur.
He started off as a consultant and team leader with Frost & Sullivan, in 2003. Two years later, he joined Encreate Consulting as senior consultant.
June of 2007 saw him joining Ernst & Young (EY), as manager, advisory services. Within a year he was elevated to senior manager, advisory services.
After over three and a half years with EY, he joined the National Bank of Abu Dhabi, in December of 2010, as senior manager, strategy and planning.
Less than three years into this role, he was promoted to head of group strategy, in 2013. By March of 2014, he was elevated to managing director and head of global transaction banking-product and business management.
April of 2017 was witness to Ramana Kumar being appointed EVP-head of payments and digital, PBG, First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB).
Four years later, in 2021, he moved to Magnati, as CEO.
In his new assignment at Paytm, Kumar will be expected to lead the payments and financial-services distribution company’s expansion in the UAE and the broader Middle East, focusing on developing digital payment solutions tailored to local needs. He will leverage the company’s proven technology and expertise as a pioneer of mobile payments and payment devices in India to drive regional growth.
Vijay Shekhar Sharma, founder & CEO, Paytm is relying on Kumar’s abilities to build a “formidable merchant payments business in the UAE” as the company “aims to serve the region by building and bringing strong regional leadership, backed by our proven technology.”
Ramana Kumar himself is looking forward to working closely “with regulators and ecosystem partners to introduce impactful innovations and strengthen the digital payments landscape.”