Counsel, Core Product

Mastercard; Kuala Lumpur; On-site; MYR 180,000 - 300,000; Full time

Job summary

Mastercard Asia Pacific is seeking an experienced attorney to join our legal team in Kuala Lumpur. You will provide comprehensive, end‑to‑end legal support to the Products & Innovation teams across Asia Pacific, negotiating complex technology and commercial agreements and advising on regulatory and compliance risks.

The ideal candidate has 6+ years of post‑qualification experience, a strong background in general commercial law, and the ability to collaborate with internal stakeholders across

Qualifications

• Requires strong legal drafting and negotiation skills.
• Experience with technology, payments, or licensing agreements is preferred.
• Fluent in English; additional Asian languages are a plus.

Responsibilities

• Provide end-to-end legal support to the Products & Innovation teams in Asia Pacific.
• Draft, negotiate and review complex technology and commercial agreements.
• Collaborate with regulatory, privacy, IP and other internal teams to manage risk and ensure compliance.
• Supervise external law firms and guide regional contract training.

Skills

Legal analysis

Negotiation

Contract drafting

Cross‑functional collaboration

English fluency

Education

Bachelor of Laws / JD

Job description

Our Purpose

Mastercard powers economies and empowers people in 200+ countries and territories worldwide. Together with our customers, we’re helping build a sustainable economy where everyone can prosper. We support a wide range of digital payments choices, making transactions secure, simple, smart and accessible. Our technology and innovation, partnerships and networks combine to deliver a unique set of products and services that help people, businesses and governments realize their greatest potential.

Title And Summary

Counsel, Core Product

Overview

Mastercard is a technology company in the global payments industry. We operate the world’s fastest payments processing network, connecting consumers, financial institutions, digital wallet providers, merchants, governments and businesses in more than 210 countries and territories. Mastercard’s products and solutions enable Mastercard’s customers to conduct their transactions, whether in the physical or digital worlds, in a safe, secure and convenient manner. Mastercard Asia Pacific legal team is responsible for supporting the Asia Pacific business and negotiating and drafting contracts with customers and key stakeholders, managing issues related to licensing, franchise, marketing and promotions, products and services offerings, regulatory and legal affairs, mergers acquisitions and joint ventures, restructurings, dispute resolutions, and other day-to-day operational issues. Mastercard’s Products & Innovation team creates great experiences for consumers and businesses across all channels and devices, allowing our customers to enable commerce in ways that were not possible before. Mastercard is seeking an experienced attorney to join its Asia Pacific legal team to be responsible for providing comprehensive, end-to-end, legal support to the Products & Innovation teams. The ideal candidate is a technology and payments-minded attorney with extensive product development experience who can manage day-to-day legal support for dynamic technologists. The candidate must demonstrate sound business and legal judgement, thrive in a fast-paced environment, with a diverse workload, and have a proven track record of providing pragmatic and proactive legal advice. The candidate must have extensive experience providing both tactical and strategic legal support to executive level business professionals.

Role

• The role will be based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
• Responsible for providing strategic legal support to the Products & Innovation team in Asia Pacific, and also responsible for other work, including project based work and pan-region work, which will be assigned.
• Partner with technology, sales, franchise, marketing, communications and others to develop and launch innovative products and solutions that differentiate Mastercard and meet our customers’ and users rapidly changing needs.
• Draft and negotiate a wide range of contracts (including complex technology agreements, strategic partnership agreement, customer and vendor agreements) to drive issuer, merchant acceptance and consumer adoption of product solutions through collaboration with digital technology companies, global telecommunications companies, innovative payments startups, merchants, government and financial institutions.
• Collaborate with in-house and external specialists (including regulatory, AML compliance, data protection, intellectual property and anti‑trust counsel) to identify relevant issues and help the business effectively navigate legal risks.
• Instruct and supervise a network of external law firms in assigned countries.
• Deal with jurisdictional and commercial complexities that have an impact on Mastercard's business (accordingly, the nature of the legal function includes a commercial and strategic dimension).
• Assist Mastercard Public Policy and Regulatory teams in their engagements.
• Conduct regional training/monitoring of global Law Department policies and contracts such as contract training.
• Working with global staff when agreements are required for implementation of projects in the Asia Pacific region.

All About You

• Bachelor of Laws or Juris Doctor from an established and reputable law school in a common law jurisdiction.
• Ability to grasp complex new business concepts and develop and implement creative approaches to problems while identifying and balancing risks with results.
• Familiarity with law and regulations in the banking and payments space will be considered favorably.
• Minimum post-qualification experience of 6 years.
• Relevant post-qualification experience in general commercial legal matters in a reputable law firm and an MNC. In-house experience in an MNC is strongly desired.
• Fluent in English. Fluency in Chinese or other Asian languages will be viewed favorably.
• Must be able to work independently and as part of a team.
• Must be able to strike a balance between the two principal objectives of being a facilitator to the business and protecting the interests of the company.
• Must be able to contribute and operate effectively within a diverse multicultural organization.
• Quick learner, stress resistant, ability to grasp complex new business concepts, good commercial acumen and creative approach to problem-solving.
• Knowledge of banking or financial services industry: ideally cards, payments, settlement etc.
• Experience in providing legal advice to an organization involved in sponsorship, loyalty rewards, advertising, marketing, promotions, gaming and lotteries, licensing, franchising etc.
• Experience in handling competition law issues.

Corporate Security Responsibility

• Abide by Mastercard’s security policies and practices;
• Ensure the confidentiality and integrity of the information being accessed;
• Report any suspected information security violation or breach, and
• Complete all periodic mandatory security trainings in accordance with Mastercard’s guidelines.

All activities involving access to Mastercard assets, information, and networks comes with an inherent risk to the organization and, therefore, it is expected that every person working for, or on behalf of, Mastercard is responsible for information security and must: