Irina Kamkhadze

Irina Kamkhadze has a diverse and extensive work experience spanning several industries. Starting in 1996, they worked in the Card Department of Georgian-American JSC Absolute Bank until 2001. Following this, they served as the Head of Customer Services Department at cartu bank from 2001 to 2002. Irina then joined Marriott Hotels in 2002, working in the Accounting Department for a year.

In 2003, Irina began their career at Visa, where they held various roles over a span of 17 years. Irina started as a Business Development Executive for the Caucasus Countries, Belarus, and Moldova, before transitioning to the role of Business Development Manager for the same regions. In these positions, they developed partnerships and implemented new payment products and services across the five countries.

In 2009, Irina became the Country Manager for the Caucasus Countries at Visa, where they launched new payment products and services and upgraded national net settlement systems in two countries. After three years, they were promoted to the Regional Country Manager for the Caucasus Countries, leading Salesforce and business development with external partners. During this time, they also scaled up contactless payments and achieved the top ranking for Georgia worldwide in penetration of contactless payments.

From 2016 to 2020, Irina held the role of Sr. Director of Government Relations for CIS countries and South-East Europe at Visa. In this role, they led government relations efforts to promote legislation that increased the use of electronic transactions and advanced the development of the electronic payment industry in the region. Irina also established and led various business-to-government and private-public partnerships.

In 2020, Irina joined OpenWay as a Business Development Consultant.

Irina Kamkhadze's education history is as follows:

From 2020 to 2022, they attended Columbia Business School, where they earned a Certificate in Business Excellence in the GLOBAL BANKING PROGRAM: FINTECH | DIGITAL | ANALYTICS. Irina'sfield of study was also in the area of GLOBAL BANKING PROGRAM: FINTECH | DIGITAL | ANALYTICS.

Between 2017 and 2021, they studied at Geneva Graduate Institute and obtained an Executive Master's degree in Advocacy in International Affairs and Policy-Making.

From 2020 to 2021, they pursued a Certificate in Economics for Business at Edinburgh Business School, Heriot-Watt University.

In 2016-2017, they completed a Certificate of Advanced Studies (CAS) in Advocacy in International Affairs at Geneva Graduate Institute.

Irina'sundergraduate education was from 1992 to 1996 at Tbilisi State University, where they graduated with a Bachelor's degree in Philological Sciences, specializing in Linguistics.

In addition to their formal education, Irina Kamkhadze has obtained several certifications. Irina became a Professional Member of the 101 Blockchains Community and earned the certifications of NFT Fundamentals, Certified Enterprise Blockchain Professional (CEBP), and Enterprise Blockchains and Supply Chain Management from 101 Blockchains. Irina also completed the BLOCKCHAIN IN BUSINESS: BEYOND THE HYPE program offered by Columbia Business School Executive Education. Furthermore, they were recognized as a Sr. Teacher of English by the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sport of Georgia.