In this episode, we explore how West and Central Africa is emerging as one of the continent's most dynamic frontiers for digital payments innovation. Host Dan Baxter, Vice President of Corporate Communications for Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East & Africa (CEMEA) at Visa, sits down with Aminata Kane, Senior Vice President and Group Country Manager for West Central Africa at Visa.

Together, they unpack what the next phase of digital payments growth looks like across a region of 600 million people and 23 countries. Aminata shares her perspective on moving beyond access to meaningful participation, and why trust, design, and interoperability are essential to building payment systems people actually use.

You'll hear how Visa is:

• Designing inclusive digital payment ecosystems that are trusted, secure, and relevant to daily life
• Enabling SMEs to participate in regional and global digital commerce through fintech partnerships
• Expanding acceptance with solutions like Tap to Phone and Visa Pay
• Supporting interoperability across mobile money platforms, banks, and fintechs
• Building on strong local innovation to connect West and Central Africa to the global payments ecosystem

For more podcasts by Visa, visit: https://km.visamiddleeast.com/en_KM/about-visa/cemea-podcast.html#1

In this episode of Visa Spotlights, we explore how stablecoins are moving from speculation to real-world utility—and what this means for the future of payments across CEMEA. Host Dan Baxter, Vice President of Corporate Communications, CEMEA at Visa, sits down with Shahebaz Khan, SVP Commercial and Money Movement Solutions, CEMEA, Visa.

Together, they discuss how stablecoins can enable faster, always-on and programmable money movement, from cross-border remittances and business liquidity to payouts and everyday payments. Shahebaz also shares how Visa is helping financial institutions build and scale stablecoin solutions through Visa Direct, its Stablecoin Advisory Practice and strategic partnerships.

The conversation also explores the role of stablecoins in Gen Z’s digital economy and the emerging world of agentic commerce, where AI agents could increasingly transact on behalf of consumers.

You’ll hear how Visa is:

• Turning stablecoins into practical payment and settlement solutions
• Enabling faster, more flexible cross-border money movement
• Helping financial institutions build and scale stablecoin products
• Unlocking new opportunities across remittances, payouts and digital commerce
• Preparing for the next generation of AI-powered and programmable commerce

For more podcasts by Visa, visit: https://km.visamiddleeast.com/en_KM/about-visa/cemea-podcast.html#1

In this episode, we explore how performance, scale, and partnership are redefining global payments in an era of rapid digital acceleration. Host Dan Baxter, Vice President of Corporate Communications for Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East & Africa (CEMEA) at Visa, sits down with Matthieu Barral, Global Head of Partnerships at Checkout.com, during the Visa Payments Forum in Paris.

Together, they unpack Checkout.com’s growth journey to processing over $300 billion in annual payment volume and what it takes to build a high-performing global payments business. From shifting customer expectations to the rise of real-time, data-driven commerce, Matthieu shares his perspective on the most consequential changes shaping the payments ecosystem—and the opportunities they unlock for merchants worldwide.

The conversation dives into the concept of “payment performance” and why reliability, optimization, and seamless user experiences have become critical competitive advantages. Matthieu also explains how Checkout.com balances global scale with local expertise across more than 50 markets, enabling businesses to operate with precision in diverse regulatory and consumer environments.

You’ll hear how Visa and Checkout.com are:

•Driving higher payment acceptance and performance for merchants globally
• Enabling seamless, scalable commerce across borders with local market expertise
•Responding to industry shifts including real-time payments, AI-driven optimization, and evolving consumer expectations
•Strengthening the payments ecosystem through deep strategic partnership
•Building resilient, high-performance infrastructure to support the next generation of digital commerce

For more podcasts by Visa, visit: https://km.visamiddleeast.com/en_KM/about-visa/cemea-podcast.html#1