Naresh Marella
Dubai
Summary
Dynamic industry professional with 15+ years of versatile experience in the Payment Domain, BFSI Products and Banking in the division of Business Development, and Sales. Innovative, savvy and results-focused marketing professional with increased productivity that boosts revenue. B2B & B2C sales initiatives. A Keen communicator with the ability to relate to people across all hierarchical levels, liaising with various clients & scaling strong relationships with them.
Overview
24
24
years of professional experience
Work History
Regional - Sales BDM - Payment Specialist - MENA
TAP Payment Services LLC
Dubai
09.2023 - 03.2025
- Expertise in strategic partnerships and enterprise account management, focusing on pay-in and payout solutions within the merchant cycle.
- Instrumental in driving Tap Payments' digital payment innovation in the Middle East and KSA, facilitating easy onboarding and processing, and settling over a billion in monthly transaction volumes.
- Successfully secured and managed potential merchant partnerships, achieving annual volumes ranging from £50M to £200M in the Oman, Kuwait, Qatar, and KSA markets.
- Operations handling, trusted partner at Tap Payments for global cryptocurrency leader Binance, offered Payin – Acceptance Payment Solutions, PSP, SaaS-based.
- Created and delivered groundbreaking partnerships, products, and acquired banks, along with BFSI product integration.
- Up to date with following and reviewing VARA regulations, ADGM regulations, and targeting clients incorporated under these bodies and the DMCC Crypto and Blockchain Ecosystem.
- Pioneered robust and custom payment solutions in collaboration with payment orchestration companies, catering to the airlines, financial institutions, travel aggregators sector, prepaid cards, wallets, and insurance ERP systems. Active participant in key crypto events and summits in Dubai, such as 'Cypher Capital Hub', networking with high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs) and institutions. Participant 2025, Token 2049, Dubai.
- Targeted BNPL companies and microfinance. Onboarded live stream companies.
- Executed enterprise merchants from KSA to add APMs, MADA, STC Pay, Apple Pay, GPay, Aljomaih, Klickit (Edu ERP), Autorox, Neoleap, Dgpay, and government bodies as well.
- Closed and managed British Council, KSA, Lulu Group, Nesto Groups, Kanoo Group of Companies, Al Tayer, Jashanmall, Zid, Zaid, and Wafeq ERPs, CRM, and dlocal.
Regional - Merchant Acquisition Specialist -
PAYTABS Payment Solutions
Dubai
09.2020 - 08.2023
- Developed SoftPOS Android offerings for merchants in the Health Care, Travel, Hospitality, Transport, and Retail industries.
- Onboarded high-profile Aggregation and PSP merchants, enhancing market presence.
- Managed top-tier High-Volume Merchants, achieving monthly transaction volumes of $1M to $10M.
- Expertly migrated over 1000+ merchants from legacy systems, enhancing operational efficiency.
- Secured impressive revenue growth with monthly volumes ranging from 15 to 20 merchant SMBs and enterprise merchants. Average Collecting the monthly setup fee of $5K.
- Engaged with Oriental Brokers and Venomex, adding 10 to over 100 merchants quarterly.
- Targeted digital banks and open banking initiatives to broaden service reach.
- Onboarded Bigo Live, a live streaming app projected to generate $10M in monthly volume.
- Dealing with Oriental Brokers, Venomex Multilateral trading and custodian and adding 80 to 100+ merchants to the portfolio quarterly.
- On boarded Bigo Live, live streaming app which was potential of $ 10 M monthly volume. Dealing with crypto.
- Skillfully maintained a portfolio of 2 acquiring banks and devised strategies to grow the acquiring bank network ADIB and Magnati.
Country - Head of Sales
MyFatoorah - Kuwait's Leading Payments Company
Dubai
04.2019 - 02.2020
- At the Zero to One and One to Hundred stage, I was the first employee of the UAE Team. Build the team of three sales executives initially our workstation from coffee shops.
- Responsible for UAE sales, business development, strategy with bank partner relationships, strategic alliances, and streamlining the merchant onboarding process.
- Set up the SOP for merchant onboarding, and manage the end-to-end process until activation and the transactional stage.
- Reporting to the CEO with full P&L responsibility for existing strategic clients.
- Initiated a SWOT analysis to carry out a GTM strategy for a growing book.
- Team building and training them to be part of a results-oriented team. Conduct 80 to 100 physical cold calls in person with team members, which help to close more sales.
- Pricing strategy set up, defined, and launched in the UAE market.
- Onboarded over 200 merchants in the first six months of launch, with a setup fee collection of £5,000 to £6,000 monthly, and a volume of £1 million from the 3rd month period, and scaled up.
- Channel Partners collaborate with web developers and technology firms.
State - Head of Sales
AGS India Transact Technologies
Hyderabad, India
08.2017 - 02.2019
- Cultivated relationships with acquiring banks to enhance BIN sponsorship initiatives.
- Successfully managed deployment of 1 million POS through public and private banks.
- Executed comprehensive framework for 3,200 branches of a public sector bank, focusing on sales and merchant acquisition.
- Directed sales for Andhra Bank and Gramina Banks, achieving over 100 monthly EDC sales across 950 branches.
- Implemented BIN sponsorship and aggregator models for diverse banking sectors, identifying prospective merchants effectively.
- Delivered customized APIs and integration solutions to companies with 50 to 1,000 outlets in partnership with billing software firms.
- Orchestrated EDC migration projects, facilitating smooth transitions between banks and ECR support.
- Appointed CAPEX and OPEX distributors, consistently achieving over 100 monthly deployments.
South India - Head of Sales
Telr Payment Solutions India Pvt Ltd
Hyderabad, India
09.2015 - 11.2016
- Selected as the fourth employee of Telr India’s sales division for South India.
- Launched Payment Business in the South region, establishing a strong market presence.
- Onboarded over 200 merchants from startups and small businesses within six months.
- Introduced business and channel partners to accelerate market access efficiently.
- Optimised sales methods to best acquire, develop and retain customers.
Key Account Manager
PAYU Payments PVT. LTD
Hyderabad, India
06.2013 - 09.2015
- Onboarding high-volume merchants. Abi Bus and RedBus, India's largest bus booking portal. Sri Chaitanya Educational Institutions (600 schools and colleges).
- Long-tail merchant. From startup, SMB, to enterprise merchants.
- Partnerships, educational institutions, and aggregators.
- End-to-end merchant onboarding solutions.
- Participating in startup events and roadshows to generate leads.
Sales Manager
Atom Technologies Limited - NTTDATA
Hyderabad, India
08.2012 - 05.2013
- One of the pioneering payment companies with IVR payment solutions.
- HDFC, Axis Bank, and partnerships.
- MyClassBoard, Digital Campus (ERP/CRM connected with 5,000 educational institutions), and JNTU University - Payment Collaboration.
- From the lead generation, testing, and activation stages handled.
Customer Service Officer
ADNOC (Abu Dhabi National Oil Company).
Sharjah
01.2011 - 08.2011
- Managed the issuance of Rahal Petroleum Cards, ensuring secure transactions backed by bank guarantees.
- Issuance of Diesel/Petrol ADNOC Corporate Cards to corporate companies and construction companies at the Sharjah branch.
- Maintained excellent customer satisfaction by offering friendly, helpful and informative customer service.
- Organised and updated customer records, ensuring data accuracy and confidentiality.
Business Development Officer
Mashreq Bank
Dubai
03.2004 - 08.2010
- Top performer in selling VIP credit cards among the UAE team.
- Handled a portfolio of 1 billion in the Northern Emirates, EDC/POS business, merchant acquisition, and monitoring development. Second-largest POS-deployed bank in the UAE.
- A total of 100,000 POS were deployed in 2008, aiming for 300,000 by 2012.
- Individual deployment of 272 EDCs, June 2008.
- Handled the entire northern emirates of Sharjah, Ajman, Ras Al Khaimah, Umm Al Quwain, and Fujairah with an AED 1 billion portfolio.
- Promoted and joined Corporate Banking, building a network of corporate accounts, high-net-worth accounts, and accounts with a monthly average balance of £5 million.
Assistant Team Lead
Standard Chartered Bank - DST - MedianDirect
Bangalore, India
04.2001 - 01.2004
- Generated leads from payroll departments through cold-calling software companies.
- Achieved daily and monthly targets to boost team performance.
- Developed a high-performing team focused on credit card services.
- Employed results-driven strategies to meet monthly objectives.
- Facilitated training sessions for new hires to ensure adherence to company standards.
- Organised team-building activities to strengthen relationships and improve team dynamics.
Education
MASTER OF ARTS - Philosophy
Sri Venkateshwara University
India01.1999
Skills
- EDC/TERMINALS MIGRATION
- 3DS2 O API/SDK
- BFSI
- BIN
- WEB STORE & APP DEV
- STABLECOIN
- STAKING
- LEAD GENERATION
- IVR
- NEGOTIATIONS
- GTM
- BTC
- CRYPTO
- SOP KEY
- CAPEX
- OPEX
- CRM
- ERP
- OVERALL P/L
- GOVT RFP
Custom Section
Dynamic industry professional with 15+ years of versatile experience in the Payment Domain, BFSI Products and Banking in the division of Business Development, and Sales. Innovative, savvy and results-focused marketing professional with increased productivity that boosts revenue. B2B & B2C sales initiatives. A Keen communicator with the ability to relate to people across all hierarchical levels, liaising with various clients & scaling strong relationships with them.
Timeline
Regional - Sales BDM - Payment Specialist - MENA
TAP Payment Services LLC
09.2023 - 03.2025
Regional - Merchant Acquisition Specialist -
PAYTABS Payment Solutions
09.2020 - 08.2023
Country - Head of Sales
MyFatoorah - Kuwait's Leading Payments Company
04.2019 - 02.2020
State - Head of Sales
AGS India Transact Technologies
08.2017 - 02.2019
South India - Head of Sales
Telr Payment Solutions India Pvt Ltd
09.2015 - 11.2016
Key Account Manager
PAYU Payments PVT. LTD
06.2013 - 09.2015
Sales Manager
Atom Technologies Limited - NTTDATA
08.2012 - 05.2013
Customer Service Officer
ADNOC (Abu Dhabi National Oil Company).
01.2011 - 08.2011
Business Development Officer
Mashreq Bank
03.2004 - 08.2010
Assistant Team Lead
Standard Chartered Bank - DST - MedianDirect
04.2001 - 01.2004
MASTER OF ARTS - Philosophy
Sri Venkateshwara University