Calasanz is new Mastercard Philippine country manager

MANILA, Philippines — Mastercard recently announced the appointment of Simon Calasanz as its country manager for the Philippines, bringing nearly two decades of local experience in the banking and finance industry to the organization’s local leadership team.

As country manager, Calasanz will be focused on accelerating acceptance and usage of digital payments, especially for smaller merchants and businesses, while also expanding on Mastercard’s ongoing digital and financial inclusion initiatives in the country.

Calasanz’s ‘digital-first’ business acumen and two-decades long career in the Philippines payments industry will support Mastercard to double down on work with partners in different industries. Calasanz will also focus on accelerating the uptake of contactless card payments and strengthening Mastercard’s proposition as a multi-rail payments technology company.

Calasanz started his career with HSBC Group where he moved up through the company to positions such as senior vice president for product management in personal financial services. His last position with HSBC was in 2015 as senior vice president, head of sales, in the bank’s retail banking and wealth management department.

Calasanz was then appointed to the position of president of RCBC Bankard Services Corp. towards the end of 2015—a position he held until 2020, when he was promoted to the role of executive vice president, head of consumer lending at RCBC.

Calasanz also served as the president of the Credit Card Association of the Philippines from 2010 to 2014 where he championed the development and initiatives of the industry.

Calasanz holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Commerce with a major in Marketing Management, as well as a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology, from De La Salle University.