Lead, Market entry Strategy

About the Team:

Driving PayU's expansion through strategic partnerships and innovative payment solutions, our Growth Sales team transforms businesses by unlocking seamless financial experiences.

About the Role:

We are seeking an exceptional Market Entry Strategy lead to spearhead PayU's expansion into new product categories. You will develop and execute comprehensive market entry strategies for our B2B payments, connected banking, startups and more going forward.

Responsibilities:

Strategic Planning & Market Analysis

• Conduct comprehensive market assessments of target product segments, analyzing market size, growth potential, regulatory landscape, competitive dynamics, and customer needs in the fintech and payments ecosystem
• Develop detailed market entry strategies by defining optimal entry methods (direct investment, partnerships, acquisitions, joint ventures)
• Create robust business cases and financial models to support strategic recommendations, including revenue projections, cost structures, and ROI analysis
• Analyze emerging market trends, digital payment adoption rates, e-commerce growth, and fintech innovation opportunities

Regulatory & Compliance Strategy

• Navigate complex fintech regulatory environments across multiple jurisdictions, working closely with legal and compliance teams
• Develop market entry strategies that ensure full compliance with local banking, payment processing, and financial services regulations
• Assess regulatory risks and create mitigation strategies for payment aggregator licenses, AML/KYC requirements, and data protection laws
• Build relationships with local regulatory bodies and government stakeholders

Business Development & Partnerships

• Identify and evaluate strategic partnership opportunities with local banks, fintech companies, e-commerce platforms, and technology providers
• Develop partnership frameworks and integration strategies for B2B and connected banking
• Coordinate with PayU's investment team to identify and evaluate fintech startup opportunities in target markets

Cross-Functional Leadership & Execution

• Lead cross-functional teams including product, technology, legal, compliance, marketing, and operations to translate strategy into actionable plans
• Collaborate with regional teams across India
• Manage complex project timelines, budgets, and deliverables from market assessment through successful launch
• Drive operational readiness including local talent acquisition, infrastructure setup, and go-to-market execution

Stakeholder Management & Communication

• Present market entry strategies, business cases, and progress updates to C-suite executives
• Prepare comprehensive board presentations and investor materials for market expansion initiatives
• Ensure alignment across global and regional stakeholders on market entry priorities and resource allocation
• Build and maintain relationships with key external stakeholders including regulators, partners, and industry associations

Risk Management & Performance Optimization

• Identify and mitigate financial, operational, regulatory, and reputational risks associated with market expansion
• Develop KPIs and success metrics for market entry initiatives, establishing monitoring and optimization frameworks
• Create contingency plans and exit strategies for underperforming market entries
• Ensure alignment with PayU's corporate governance standards and ethical business practice

Requirements:

Education & Experience

• Bachelor's degree in business, Economics, Finance, or related field; MBA from top-tier institution preferred
• 5-8 years of experience in corporate strategy, management consulting, investment banking, or business development
• Experience in fintech, payments, or financial services industry is a plus
• Proven track record of successful market entry strategies and international business expansion

Technical Skills & Expertise

• Deep understanding of fintech ecosystem including payments processing, digital wallets, BNPL, and alternative credit
• Strong knowledge of regulatory frameworks governing payment aggregators, financial services, and fintech operations
• Exceptional analytical and financial modelling skills with proficiency in advanced Excel, SQL, and business intelligence tools
• Experience with market sizing methodologies, competitive analysis frameworks, and strategic planning processes
• Familiarity with venture capital, private equity, and investment evaluation processes

Core Competencies

• Exceptional communication and presentation skills with ability to influence senior executives and external stakeholders
• Strong project management capabilities with experience managing complex, multi-workstream initiatives
• Collaborative leadership style with ability to work effectively across cultures and time zones
• Strategic thinking combined with hands-on execution capabilities
• Strong problem-solving skills and ability to work in fast-paced, ambiguous environments

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience working with payment aggregators, digital payment platforms, or e-commerce enablers
• Previous experience in management consulting (McKinsey, BCG, Bain) or similar strategic roles
• Track record of successful fintech investments or M&A transactions
• Technical background in financial technology or digital platforms

Reporting Structure

• This role reports to me and works closely with PayU's executive leadership team, regional heads, and functional leaders across product, legal, operations, and finance.

What we offer?

• A positive, get-things-done workplace
• A dynamic, constantly evolving space (change is par for the course – important you are comfortable with this).
• An inclusive environment that ensures we listen to a diverse range of voices when making decisions.
• Ability to learn cutting edge concepts and innovation in an agile start-up environment with a global scale.
• Access to 5000+ training courses accessible anytime/anywhere to support your growth and development (Corporate with top learning partners like Harvard, Coursera, Udacity).

About us:

PayU, one of India's leading digital financial services providers with Prosus as an investor, operates businesses that are regulated by the Reserve Bank of India and offers advanced solutions to meet the digital payment requirements of the Indian market. PayU India companies aim to create a full-stack digital financial services platform to serve all (tapped and untapped) financial needs of customers through technology solutions.

PayU provide payment gateway solutions to online businesses through its cutting-edge and award-winning technology and has empowered 5 lakhs+ businesses, including India’s leading enterprises, e-commerce giants and SMBs. It enables businesses to collect digital payments across 150+ online payment methods such as Credit Cards, Debit Cards, Net Banking, EMIs, pay-later, QR, UPI, Wallets, and more. It’s a preferred partner in the affordability ecosystem, offering the maximum coverage of issuers and easy-to-implement integrations across card-based EMIs, pay-later options and new-age cardless EMIs. PayU offers e-commerce brands best-in-industry success rates while ensuring a seamless checkout experience.

Our Commitment to Building A Diverse and Inclusive Workforce

As a global and multi-cultural organization with varied ethnicities thriving across locations, we realize that our responsibility towards fulfilling the D&I commitment is huge. Therefore, we continuously strive to create a diverse, inclusive, and safe environment, for all our people, communities, and customers. Our leaders are committed to create an inclusive work culture which enables transparency, flexibility, and unbiased attention to every PayUneer so they can succeed, irrespective of gender, color, or personal faith. An environment where every person feels they belong, that they are listened to, and where they are empowered to speak up. At PayU we have zero tolerance towards any form of prejudice whether a specific race, ethnicity, or of persons with disabilities, or the LGBTQ communities. Do we need to hire for this replacement