Visa’s Vice President & General Manager Kuwait and Qatar Shashank Singh
Doha, Qatar: Visa recognises the critical role SMEs play in Qatar’s economy and is committed to supporting their digital transformation to meet the consumer demand for seamless payment experiences. In fact, 96% of all in-store digital payments in the country are contactless. This does not only show how comfortable consumers in the country are with contactless but also the high expectations they have for seamless payment options, said Visa’s Vice President & General Manager Kuwait and Qatar Shashank Singh.
In an interview with The Peninsula, Shashank Singh highligted how Visa supports and enables SMEs, startups, and fintechs within the Qatari business ecosystem. He noted that the solutions like Tap to Phone are so important for businesses as this solution allows merchants to accept payments via smartphones, without having to invest in new hardware like a point-of-sale terminal.
“Since we launched this in country a few years ago, we’ve seen impressive growth—transaction volumes have increased five-fold, and the number of transactions has grown six-fold, now covering over 5,000 merchant locations, including Karwa Taxis, DHL, and Hi Wash. QNB achieved the highest growth with this solution."
"Visa is also focused on financial inclusion, addressing the needs of unbanked and underbanked segments. Our ‘Where Cash Hides’ research reveals that 20% of transactions in Qatar are still cash-based, primarily for peer-to-peer payments, tips, and rent. Visa is working to shift these transactions to digital channels," he added.
Commenting about cybersecurity, Singh noted that security and innovation are core to Visa’s mission, and this is clearly reflected in our initiatives across Qatar. Globally, “we have invested over $10bn in cybersecurity in the last five years, and for good reasons: we recognize that trust is the foundation of any payment system.”
“For eCommerce, we offer the Visa Acceptance Platform (CyberSource), featuring tokenization technology that protects sensitive card information by replacing it with unique identification symbols that retain all the essential data without compromising security. This technology has generated around $40bn in eCommerce revenue for businesses globally and saved $650m in fraud last year. Visa also uses AI and machine learning to analyse transactions in real-time, which helps to prevent fraud and enhance security,” he added.
Visa stands out by ensuring global and local online acceptance with just one card, making it a reliable choice for convenient transactions both in Qatar and at more than 150 million merchants worldwide. Visa’s transactions are processed by our trusted global network, VisaNet, also offering enhanced protection for our products, whether prepaid, debit or credit.
Singh further said, “As we look to the future, Visa will continue to lead in secure, user-centric payment experiences, empowering Qatar’s residents and businesses with the technology they need for a safe and seamless digital experience. Additionally, Visa will also continue to be a key partner in the digitisation of government services for the convenience and security of Qatar consumers, aligning with Vision 2030 by enabling the acceptance of Visa debit and credit cards online.”
“As we move into 2025 and beyond, Visa’s strategy in Qatar is centered on strengthening our partnerships with governments, banks, fintechs, and businesses to accelerate payment digitization and enhance financial inclusion for both consumers and businesses.”
He added, “We expect Qatar’s digital economy to continue growing, bringing more of the benefits of digital payments to more consumers, businesses and the national economy. We recognise the government for their efforts in fostering a level playing field for the payments industry. Our partnership with Qatar Central Bank (QCB), in particular, is critical to the success of the industry’s efforts and we look forward to continuing our collaboration and consultation with the central bank in enabling new innovations to further drive the country’s digital transformation.”
