General Counsel, Asia Pacific

Overview

The General Counsel, Asia Pacific, oversees the legal and regulatory needs of a diverse and high-growth region. This role will be the primary legal service provider for the Asia Pacific region, responsible for supporting the legal aspects of the countries in the region. This role is a business relationship manager who partners with business leaders to help shape and execute Mastercard’s strategy while mitigating risks by leveraging internal cross-functional support. The legal team, led by the General Counsel, focuses on personal accountability to drive the business forward through hands-on engagement, partnership and strategic value creation. The candidate must demonstrate sound business and legal judgement, thrive in a fast-paced environment with a diverse workload, and have a proven track record of providing pragmatic and proactive legal advice. Confidence dealing with unknowns is a must. The candidate is required to have extensive experience providing both tactical and strategic legal support to executive-level business professionals and will need to partner closely with those leadership teams to provide holistic counsel to Asia Pacific leadership.

Dual reporting to the General Counsel of Asia Pacific, Europe Middle East and Africa (APEMEA) and President of Asia Pacific, the appointed person is expected to be a seasoned general manager that will help the region embrace new opportunities and address existing and new challenges. Mastercard has its regional headquarters in Singapore. The position is located in Singapore and will require travel as necessary for business purposes.

• Generally responsible for all the legal support related to the Asia Pacific region including litigation, anti-trust strategy, privacy, regulatory matters, drafting, review and negotiation of commercial contracts with clients and suppliers, managing corporate entities, creating new entities, corporate housekeeping, M&A deals or product agreements.
• Member of the Asia Pacific Leadership Team and APEMEA legal management team.
• Provide expert and strategic legal advice to the Asia Pacific leadership team, anticipating issues and risks, identifying proactive solutions to mitigate risks, and supporting the business in its commercial and strategic role.
• Manage a team of professionals by overseeing daily workloads, assigning projects, coaching, mentoring and providing consistent feedback.
• Attract, develop, direct, motivate and drive performance from the team.
• Base decision-making on ethics and integrity.
• Manage external legal counsels in the assigned countries.
• Monitor legislative and regulatory developments.
• Oversee governance framework of Mastercard companies to ensure compliance with evolving regulatory requirements.
• Collaborate with the Law and Policy Department to deliver outstanding service to the business in a way that fits local/regional and global strategy.

• Law Degree from a reputable university; any additional qualifications including international credentials are a plus.
• Significant experience in general commercial legal matters in a reputable law firm and/or as in-house counsel, preferably in financial services, banking or technology sectors.
• Significant experience in the Asia Pacific region and with external stakeholders in the region.
• Strategic leadership ability with capacity to advise executive-level management on complex matters.
• Ability to function independently and manage multiple priorities.
• Experience providing legal support to US organizations and corporate law experience is an asset.
• Experience in people management, including both attorneys and non-attorneys, with strong leadership qualities.
• Ability to contribute and operate effectively within a diverse, multicultural organization.
• Strong collaboration and communication skills with cross-functional teams and strong commercial judgment and creative problem-solving.

All activities involving access to Mastercard assets, information, and networks carry inherent risk. Every person working for or on behalf of Mastercard is responsible for information security and must:

• Abide by Mastercard’s security policies and practices.
• Ensure the confidentiality and integrity of the information being accessed.
• Report any suspected information security violation or breach.
• Complete all periodic mandatory security trainings in accordance with Mastercard’s guidelines.

• Executive

• Full-time

• Legal

• Financial Services, IT Services and IT Consulting, and Technology, Information and Internet