Full-Time

Business Development Director

Visa Direct, South Europe Director

Posted on 6/23/2025

Visa

Visa

10,001+ employees

Global digital payments network processing transactions

No salary listed

Milan, Metropolitan City of Milan, Italy

Hybrid

Hybrid role; in-office days to be confirmed by hiring manager.

Category
Business & Strategy (1)
Requirements
  • Relevant work experience in the banking / payment / FX services industry.
Responsibilities
  • Define and execute Go-to-Market plans in agreement with key internal stakeholders: build a strong pipeline, transform it into opportunities and revenues aligned with the company’s objectives.
  • Create and nurture wide network of key stakeholders in Italy and other allocated countries.
  • Client interaction with senior representatives of key targets in your region, e.g. Head of Payments, Head of Retail Products, Head of Transaction banking, Head of Correspondent banking, Head of Cards, Head of Network, etc.
  • Based on the deep knowledge of targeted entities’ situation, define best product proposition, while trying to create roadmap for implementation of all services
  • Support the team in structuring high value, complex global commercial deal structures
  • Support local, in-market sales teams with top priority sales initiatives
  • Interact with every area of the organization: Business Development, Customer Support, Visa Consulting Analytics, Legal, Risk & Compliance, Marketing Teams, and C-Level as required.
  • Leads prospecting and new customer acquisition strategies for opportunities related to Money Movements with existing and new clients. Builds relationships with new stakeholders, organize and run events to gain new prospects and communicate widely on the Visa Direct solutions
  • Works closely with Account Executives to coordinate opportunities with overall customer account plan
  • Researches customer and market trends to identify potential new clients and opportunities, introduce innovative solutions, and position Visa as a market leader
  • Assesses deal potential after identifying new opportunities based on strong Visa Direct product / solution knowledge, and maintains cross-functional relationships to pull in specialists / engineers where needed to drive deals forward
  • Anticipates and uncovers ‘hidden’ client needs in money movements, giving them confidence that Visa can address their needs and jointly achieve their business objectives
  • Leads with a client-first sales mindset and creates custom, differentiated pitches and solutions that grow Visa and clients’ business
  • Maintains awareness of deal margins and actual revenue generation when negotiating and effectively sells and negotiates based on value to close deals quickly and effectively
  • Leverages internal (e.g., Legal, Finance, Risk & Compliance, Marketing) and external partnerships to bring the best of Visa Direct to clients
Desired Qualifications
  • Experience in selling services to banks, fintech and merchant customers
  • Deep knowledge of predominant payment / card ecosystems, ideally with a well established network of contacts in Italy.
  • Deep knowledge of the various sales cycles and stages
  • The successful candidate will effectively lead new customer acquisition activities and effectively manage them throughout the entire sales cycle.
  • The candidate can work collaboratively across internal Visa functions to build a Visa network, solve complex problems, and serve as the face of Visa to external partners.
  • The ideal candidate will bring passion for and interest in Payments with client-relationship building skills, presence, knowledge of payment strategies and priorities. This is a proactive candidate who is resilient when faced with challenges and who has the ability to execute on ambitious goals/quotas.
  • Creative self-starter with a bias toward action and proven track record for successfully selling large contracts
  • Constructive team member with good track record to overachieve objectives and constantly grow own skills and knowledge.
  • Very good listening and communication skills (both verbal and written). Ability to explain complex business and technical concepts to audiences in an approachable way to influence and drive adaption
  • Ability to conduct business negotiations in Italian and English. Other European language is a plus
  • Ability to coach more junior colleagues is a plus

Visa operates a global digital payments network that connects consumers, businesses, banks, and governments to enable electronic card payments. Its system moves money through a card-based flow: a merchant request, card authorization via Visa, funds settlement between banks, and data processing, with fees earned on transactions and services. The company differentiates itself with its worldwide network, large client base, and partnerships that expand access to digital payments while supporting sustainable commerce. Its goal is to widen financial inclusion and provide convenient, secure electronic payments for a growing share of global commerce.

Company Size

10,001+

Company Stage

N/A

Total Funding

$9.6M

Headquarters

San Francisco, California

Founded

1958

Simplify Jobs

Simplify's Take

What believers are saying

  • Visa Ventures invested in Nekuda's $5M round for agentic payments.
  • Visa Ventures led BVNK's $50M Series B for stablecoin payments.
  • VisaNet handled 164.7 billion transactions annually in 2021.

What critics are saying

  • FedNow bypasses Visa, cutting transaction volume in 12-24 months.
  • PSD2 enables direct payments, causing 70-85% volume loss in 18-36 months.
  • CBDCs in 130+ countries reduce Visa's market by 15-25% in 36-60 months.

What makes Visa unique

  • VisaNet processes 76,000 transactions per second with 99.9999% availability.
  • VisaNet connects 3.6 billion accounts across 200+ countries.
  • VisaNet uses AI for smarter authorization and fraud prevention.

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