Mr Lyons will be responsible for building payment advancements and leveraging enhanced time-to-market capabilities to drive innovations through conceptualization, proof of concept, pilot, and support commercialization, in order to deliver additional value to customers and consumers.
He will assemble a globally diverse R&D team tapping into the broad knowledge of MasterCard payment experts and technologists worldwide.
Previously, Mr Lyons served as the CEO for Orbiscom. Prior to MasterCard’s acquisition of Orbiscom in December 2008, he was responsible for defining strategy and the overall executive management of Orbiscom.
Ajay Banga, president and chief operating officer at MasterCard, said: “As the world continues to migrate toward a cashless society, we will be focused on delivering what’s next, faster and more efficient than ever before.”
Rob Reeg, president of global technology and operations at MasterCard, said: “The launch of MasterCard Labs will allow us to ideate, incubate and test new ideas, keeping MasterCard at the forefront of advancing commerce. Mr Lyons is the right person to lead this new organization, based on his in-depth knowledge of the payments industry and the record of success he has shown with innovation at Orbiscom.”
Josh Peirez, group executive of innovative platforms at MasterCard, said: “Our customers are eager to see and experience what’s next in payments and more importantly, what resonates with consumers. Under Mr Lyons’ leadership, the MasterCard Labs team will partner closely with our innovative products team to quickly produce the industry-leading solutions they are looking for.”
