Sam Ahmed departs from Facebook

Sam Ahmed has left Facebook one year five months after taking on the role as director - payments and financial services partnerships Asia Pacific. Ahmed (pictured) has confirmed this move to Marketing, adding that moving forward he will be working on KRK Prive’ venture capital fund investment committee, while retaining his position as co-founder of food firm TiffinLabs. Ahmed said TiffinLabs was started 18 months ago, and has scaled faster than planned due to COVID-19.

"I feel very privileged to be asked by Kishin RK to increase my time and role with venture capital fund KRK prive. For the last 18 months, I have been on the investment committee for the venture capital fund. The investment portfolio is focused on end-to-end digital innovation across F&B brands, technology redefining real estate assets, blockchain / AI with a focus on the global food supply chain, and brands that are redefining the customer experience," he added. Marketing has reached out to Facebook for a statement.

Ahmed added that currently there was and still is an underlying mistrust between the marketing community and Facebook platforms related to effectiveness measurement, what is successful content and re-targeting / privacy. "But I have not changed my stance on this subject. I have spent the last eight years training my teams across consumer brands, retail and fintech how to utilise Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp to link to potential and loyal users. I have been one of the biggest spenders across that time on Facebook platforms in AP," he said.

Prior to joining Facebook, Ahmed was with Standard Chartered as global head of digital and retail marketing and insights, where he took on the role in April 2017. Based in Singapore, Ahmed reported to Emma Sheller, global head, brand and marketing. Previously, Ahmed had been with Mastercard since 2013. He held the dual role of CMO and senior vice president of marketing in Asia Pacific.

He was responsible for managing the region’s marketing and marketing team of over 80 staff to drive double digit revenue growth in areas such as consumer, advertising, digital, insights, sponsorships, branding, e-commerce , product communications, B2B marketing and agency management.

He also focused on consumer value, brand perception, e-commerce transactions, travel transactions, digital wallets, product differentiation, digital commerce excellence and B2B partnerships. According to Mastercard at that time, Ahmed was instrumental in establishing the organisation’s digital marketing strategy across the region, and the development and execution of many successful campaigns.

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