Sr. Director

Visa•Published 11 hours ago•First seen 9 hours ago

About Us
Visa is a world leader in payments technology, facilitating transactions between consumers, merchants, financial institutions and government entities across more than 200 countries and territories, dedicated to uplifting everyone, everywhere by being the best way to pay and be paid.

At Visa, you'll have the opportunity to create impact at scale — tackling meaningful challenges, growing your skills and seeing your contributions impact lives around the world.

Join Visa and do work that matters – to you, to your community, and to the world. Progress starts with you.

Job Description

Overview:

The Japan Growth Products team is responsible for defining and executing Visa’s strategy in emerging payments and commerce, with an equal focus on Stablecoin and Agentic Commerce. The team drives strategic partnerships, product deployment and go-to-market execution in Japan.

The team works across a broad ecosystem including financial institutions, fintechs, AI platforms, merchants, wallets, crypto and digital asset companies, technology partners, and policy and regulatory stakeholders to create and commercialize new market opportunities in Japan.

This role primarily covers Japan and serves as the People Manager for the Japan Growth Products team, leading a team of several professionals and providing direction, work allocation, priority setting, coaching, development and performance management. The role will also indirectly support Growth Products initiatives in Korea and Mongolia by leveraging the strategies, insights, partnerships and market models developed in Japan.

The role will report directly to the JKM Head of Product, Vice President, and will work closely with Product, Technology, Commercial, Legal, Compliance, Risk and other teams across Asia Pacific and Global.

Operating in fast-evolving and often ambiguous areas, the role will lead strategy development, people management, partnership development, proof of concept, pilot execution, commercialization and scaling. The current core areas are Stablecoin, Agentic Commerce and Crypto. As the Growth Products strategy and portfolio evolve, the role may also assume responsibility for additional emerging Growth Products solutions.

Key Responsibilities:

Growth Products Strategy and Opportunity Development:

Develop and execute the Growth Products strategy for Japan, creating new revenue opportunities and strengthening Visa’s market position across Stablecoin, Agentic Commerce and Crypto.
Assess customer needs, regulatory developments, the competitive environment and technology trends to identify priority use cases, customer segments, partnerships and investment areas for Visa.
Define the medium- to long-term strategy, business plan, roadmap and success measures for Growth Products in Japan.
Connect Visa’s existing products, network and capabilities across Tokenization, Identity, Risk and Trust with new customer value propositions and market opportunities.
Evaluate new opportunities based on strategic relevance, customer value, revenue potential, feasibility, scalability and risk, and translate priorities into resource allocation and go-to-market roadmaps.
As the Growth Products portfolio evolves, assess the market potential and relevance of emerging solutions beyond Stablecoin, Agentic Commerce and Crypto for Japan.
Work with Product leadership in Korea and Mongolia to share insights, customer propositions, partnership models and implementation experience from Japan, indirectly supporting Growth Products strategy in both markets.
Own and drive the commercial success of the Growth Products portfolio in Japan, including revenue growth, business performance, investment prioritization, and portfolio outcomes.

Stablecoin:

Define and develop opportunities related to Stablecoin payments, issuance and distribution, on- and off-ramps, cross-border flows, settlement and tokenization for the Japan market.
Build strategic partnerships with banks, trust banks, funds transfer service providers, fintechs, wallets, digital asset companies and blockchain ecosystem participants.
Lead opportunities from concept through proof of concept, pilot and commercial launch together with clients and partners.
Work with Legal, Compliance, Risk, Government Engagement and other stakeholders to build sustainable and scalable business models that reflect Japan’s regulatory and market environment.
Translate Visa’s Global and Asia Pacific Stablecoin capabilities into relevant client propositions, commercial models and implementation plans for Japan.
Feed customer needs, regulatory considerations, product gaps and operational learnings from Japan into Asia Pacific and Global product and platform strategies.

Agentic Commerce:

Develop and execute Visa’s Japan strategy for emerging commerce experiences in which AI agents support product and service discovery, comparison, decision-making, purchase and payment on behalf of consumers and businesses.
Build the ecosystem across AI platforms, merchants, e-commerce companies, financial institutions, fintechs, gateways and orchestration providers.
Lead pilots and market activation involving AI shopping agents, merchant enablement, payment orchestration, tokenization, identity, risk and trust frameworks.
Translate Visa’s Agentic Commerce capabilities and relevant industry protocols into market-ready client propositions, commercial models and go-to-market plans for Japan.
Help clarify the roles and responsibilities of AI agents, consumers, merchants, financial institutions and payment networks in delivering secure and trusted payment experiences.
Identify product requirements, operational issues, customer needs and ecosystem gaps from market implementation and incorporate those learnings into Visa’s longer-term product and platform strategy.

Crypto and Digital Assets:

Build strategic relationships with crypto exchanges, wallets, fintechs, financial institutions, blockchain networks and other digital asset ecosystem participants.
Identify new use cases that connect Visa’s products and network with crypto and digital asset ecosystems.
Monitor regulatory developments, market structure, customer needs and the competitive landscape related to Crypto and digital assets, and assess the opportunities and risks for Visa.
Explore customer value propositions and commercial models combining Stablecoin, Tokenization, Wallets, Crypto and existing Visa credentials.
Partner with Global and Asia Pacific specialist teams to assess the potential introduction of relevant solutions in Japan.

Partnerships and Go-to-Market:

Build and expand strategic partnerships with banks, fintechs, AI platforms, merchants, acquirers, gateways, wallets and digital asset companies.
Lead the partnership and go-to-market pipeline end to end, including opportunity identification, partner engagement, qualification, solution design, business case development, commercial and contractual negotiation, internal approval and launch.
Turn early proof of concepts and pilots into repeatable commercial models, client engagement approaches and scalable market programs.
Partner with Sales, Account Executives, Product, Technology and other teams to support client propositions, opportunity development, commercial negotiation and implementation.
Manage the pipeline, investment, delivery progress, commercial opportunities and key risks across the portfolio, and provide appropriate reporting to the JKM Head of Product and relevant leadership teams.
Assess the applicability of go-to-market frameworks, client propositions and partnership models developed in Japan to Korea and Mongolia.

People Leadership and Team Management:

Lead the Japan Growth Products team and establish clear direction, priorities and expected outcomes for a team of several professionals.
Manage work allocation, goal setting, performance management, coaching, career development and capability building for team members.
Create an environment in which the team continuously deepens its expertise across Stablecoin, Agentic Commerce, Crypto and future Growth Products solutions.
Leverage individual expertise and strengths while establishing a consistent team approach to market strategy, client engagement and execution.
Build a team culture focused on high performance, ownership, collaboration and innovation.
Identify current and future capability gaps and address them through development, hiring, or the effective use of Regional and Global resources.
Contribute as a member of the Japan Product Leadership Team to the strategy, organizational effectiveness and culture of the broader Japan Product organization.

Cross-Functional Leadership:

Bring together stakeholders across Japan, Asia Pacific and Global Product, Engineering, Technology, Commercial, Legal, Compliance, Risk and Government Engagement to advance complex cross-functional initiatives.
Ensure alignment between Japan’s market priorities and Regional and Global strategies, and secure the product capabilities, technical support, expertise and investment required for Japan.
Influence senior stakeholders and multiple functions without relying on formal reporting lines or authority, driving decisions and execution forward.
Engage regularly with Product leadership in Korea and Mongolia to advise on Growth Products opportunities, initiatives, capabilities and the use of Regional and Global support.
Manage priorities, people and resources, delivery progress and risks across the portfolio with strong execution discipline.

Thought Leadership and External Engagement:

Serve as an internal and external subject matter leader on Stablecoin, Agentic Commerce and Crypto, providing strategic perspectives to clients, partners, senior leadership and cross-functional teams.
Represent Visa’s perspective and market narrative through client discussions, workshops, industry engagements, and dialogue with policy and regulatory stakeholders.
Translate complex technology, regulatory and business topics into clear messages that enable senior leaders and clients to make decisions and take action.
Stay current on developments across Stablecoin, AI, Agentic Commerce, Crypto, digital identity, tokenization, digital wallets, payments regulation and relevant standards.
Provide Japan market perspectives to Regional and Global leadership and contribute to the development of Visa’s broader Growth Products strategy.

Visa requires at least 3 days in office, expectations of these days will be confirmed by your Hiring Manager.

Qualifications

What you will need:

12 or more years of experience across payments, financial services, fintech, digital assets, AI, e-commerce, product strategy, business development or strategic partnerships.
Demonstrated experience as a People Manager, including goal setting, coaching, capability development and performance management.
Deep understanding of Japan’s payments and financial services landscape, key market participants, customer needs and regulatory environment.
Practical knowledge in one or more of the following areas: Stablecoin, digital currencies, blockchain, Crypto, tokenization, digital wallets, cross-border payments, Agentic Commerce or AI ecosystems.
Demonstrated success in taking new businesses or emerging technology initiatives from strategy through proof of concept, pilot, go-to-market, commercialization and scale.
Experience developing complex partnerships, commercial arrangements, contracts, solution designs and business cases, and leading opportunities through closure.
Experience defining and executing new revenue opportunities, commercial models or market expansion strategies.
Experience managing team priorities, resources and multiple strategic initiatives to deliver organizational outcomes.
Leadership experience in a multinational, matrixed organization, with a proven ability to mobilize senior leaders and multiple functions without relying on formal authority.
Ability to lead the Japan market while working effectively with Regional and Global teams and leadership in other markets.
Ability to balance strategic thinking with hands-on execution, prioritize effectively and make decisions in ambiguous and fast-changing environments.
Excellent communication skills, with the ability to structure complex technology, regulatory and business topics and explain them effectively to clients, senior leaders, technical stakeholders and external partners.
Strong analytical and structured problem-solving skills, commercial acumen, and the ability to identify and assess new market opportunities.
Fluency in Japanese and English, with the ability to negotiate, present, write and manage internal and external stakeholders in both languages.

What will also help:

A bachelor’s degree in business, Technology, Finance or a related discipline. An MBA, master’s degree or other advanced qualification is preferred.
Experience working in Stablecoin, Crypto, digital assets, AI platforms, fintech, e-commerce, digital wallets, marketplaces or payments infrastructure.
Experience engaging with regulators, industry associations, policy stakeholders or industry discussions related to emerging payment and technology standards.
Experience launching and scaling new services within a product organization, start-up or high-growth company.
Experience providing strategic or indirect support to markets outside Japan or across multiple markets.
Experience participating in technical discussions and translating product requirements or system considerations into business decisions.

Visa is an EEO Employer

Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability or protected veteran status. Visa will also consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with EEOC guidelines and applicable local law.