VOYAGER Innovations (Voyager) announced that Shailesh Baidwan has been named president. Reporting to founder and chief executive officer Orlando Vea, Baidwan will be in charge of the company’s operations and help shape the company’s strategy and business direction.
Baidwan also takes on the same role as president in PayMaya Philippines (PayMaya), Voyager’s fintech arm and the leading digital financial services provider in the country.
As an internationally seasoned business leader, Baidwan brings more than 25 years of management, operations, business development, sales, and marketing experience to Voyager and PayMaya.
“We welcome Shailesh to Voyager and PayMaya. I’m confident that his extensive global experience and track record will complement our vision for digital and financial inclusion in emerging markets. His strong management experience will help shape the companies not only as industry leaders but also as employers of choice and responsible corporate citizens,” said Orlando Vea, CEO and Founder of Voyager and PayMaya.
“Voyager and PayMaya are trailblazers in the Philippine digital financial services industry. Together with the rest of the management team, I am very keen and excited to drive PayMaya’s consumer and enterprise businesses leap of growth to its next phase,” said Shailesh Baidwan, President of Voyager and PayMaya.
Baidwan’s financial services experience includes major management roles at American Express and Visa across the Asia Pacific Region. He spent ten years at American Express in various assignments in Singapore, including a post as Vice President of Card and Lending, and culminating in a four-year stint as CEO of American Express Banking Corporation - India where he also directly headed the consumer issuing business of the company.
Before American Express, he had a six-year stint at Visa as director in various roles, overseeing product development and portfolio management as well as marketing for emerging products and services across the Asia Pacific Region.
Baidwan’s most recent responsibility was President of Insights & Loyalty Solutions Division at Aimia, which provided technology and marketing services for customer engagement for some of the most recognizable brands globally. As the worldwide leader in loyalty management, Aimia ran some of the largest loyalty programs for clients in major countries across the globe.
Earlier in his career, he spent six years in the fast-moving consumer goods industry (FMCG) with Nestle in India. He finished his Bachelor of Arts (Honors) in Economics at Delhi University and completed his MBA at India Institute of Management, Bangalore.
Baidwan’s appointment takes effect upon fulfillment of pertinent regulatory requirements.
Voyager is the leading technology company in the Philippines. Its mission is to accelerate digital and financial inclusion in the Philippines and enable the broader Filipino population to participate in the digital economy.
The company’s award-winning technology platforms support the following digital services:
PayMaya, the most recognized prepaid payment wallet service in the Philippines, enabling Filipinos to shop online and in-store, pay bills, buy airtime load, and send money;
PayMaya Business, the largest mobile acquiring service in the Philippines, enabling enterprises of all sizes to accept digital payments; and, Smart Padala, the largest mobile-based remittance network in the Philippines.
In the last quarter of 2018, Voyager raised US$215 million, the largest private fund raising to-date in a Philippine technology company. It is backed by PLDT, the Philippines’ leading telecommunications company; global investment firm KKR (NYSE:KKR), Tencent Holdings Ltd. (0700.HK), the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation (IFC) and IFC Emerging Asia Fund. (PR)