Visa Appoints Malak El Baba To Lead North Africa

Visa has announced the creation of a new sub-regional structure bringing together Egypt, Libya and Sudan, in a move aimed at deepening its footprint across North Africa and accelerating digital transformation in the three markets.

The restructuring forms part of the payments giant’s broader strategic growth plans and reflects its commitment to aligning more closely with national digital transformation agendas. By consolidating leadership and operations across Egypt, Libya and Sudan, Visa aims to strengthen engagement with governments, financial institutions, fintechs and merchant partners while driving financial inclusion and digital commerce enablement.

The new sub-region builds on Visa’s more than 40 years of presence across the broader North Africa, Levant and Pakistan cluster. According to the company, the updated structure is designed to bring decision-making and execution closer to clients and stakeholders, enabling faster innovation and more tailored market interventions.e

To lead the newly created sub-region, Visa has appointed Malak El Baba as Country Manager for Egypt, Libya and Sudan. In her expanded mandate, she will oversee the company’s strategic direction, business development and local market execution across the three countries.

El Baba previously served as Country Manager for Egypt, where she led several major initiatives that expanded Visa’s footprint and introduced new business lines in the market. Under her leadership, Visa strengthened partnerships with key financial institutions and ecosystem players, positioning itself as a central player in Egypt’s evolving digital payments landscape.

Her new cross-border role is expected to drive greater regional synergies, accelerate growth across the three markets and scale advanced digital commerce solutions for both consumers and businesses.

“I am honored to take on this expanded role and continue driving Visa’s strategy across Egypt, Libya, and Sudan,” said Malak El Baba. “These markets are at pivotal moments in their digital transformation journeys, and Visa remains deeply committed to supporting governments, financial institutions, merchants, and fintechs in building secure, accessible, and innovative payment experiences for everyone.”

As part of the leadership realignment, Ahmed Mohey has been appointed Head of Sales for Egypt. He previously served as Visa’s Country Manager for Tunisia, Algeria, Mauritania, Libya and Sudan, where he oversaw multi-market operations across North and West Africa.

In his new role, Mohey will focus exclusively on executing Visa’s growth strategy in Egypt, leading the company’s sales organisation and deepening value-based partnerships with key financial institutions.

With nearly two decades of experience at Visa and an extensive track record across North Africa, Mohey brings significant regional insight and client expertise to the role. His appointment underscores Visa’s intent to sharpen its commercial execution in Egypt, one of the region’s most dynamic and strategically important payments markets.

The creation of the Egypt–Libya–Sudan sub-region reflects a broader trend among global technology and payments companies to adopt more agile, market-aligned operating models across Africa and the Middle East. For Visa, the move signals a push to embed itself more deeply within national digital ecosystems at a time when governments across the region are prioritising cashless payments, fintech innovation and financial inclusion.

By consolidating leadership and strengthening local execution, Visa is positioning itself to capture the next wave of digital commerce growth in North Africa, supporting public sector digitalisation, expanding access to formal financial services, and enabling secure, scalable payment infrastructure for businesses and consumers alike.

For CIOs and technology leaders across the region, the restructuring highlights the growing importance of integrated payment ecosystems, public-private collaboration and cross-border digital strategies as key enablers of sustainable economic transformation.