Beauty, Brains, and Bold Leadership
Myat Hnin Phyu
Chief Commercial Officer (CCO)
PayPlus (Myanmar)
Beauty, Brains, and Bold Leadership
Myat Hnin Phyu
Chief Commercial Officer (CCO)
PayPlus (Myanmar)
One of the rare exemplars of both intellect and presence, Myat Hnin Phyu stands out as a distinguished woman leader in Myanmar’s evolving digital finance sector. Early in her career, she contributed to award-winning initiatives such as Ooredoo’s Mobile Women and GSMA’s Mobile Agriculture programmes, where she witnessed firsthand how thoughtfully designed digital tools can transform the lives of rural women and farmers by overcoming realworld barriers. These experiences laid a strong foundation for her commitment to inclusive innovation. Today, as Chief Commercial Officer at PayPlus Myanmar, Myat successfully led the large- scale national MyanmarPay MMQR project to launch for Central Bank of Myanmar—an initiative promoting financial inclusion for underserved communities and SMEs—which is now operated by participating banks. With the successful completion of this national project, she will now take on a regional role, overseeing PayPlus’s growth and partnerships across the Asia-Pacific region. Navigating a traditionally conservative and male-dominated corporate environment, Myat has faced the dual challenges of gender bias and societal scrutiny. As a young female leader, her confidence was often misinterpreted, and late hours or business networking were judged harshly. Additionally, her earlier role as Miss Myanmar brought public visibility but also unfair stereotypes, with assumptions about her career ambitions overshadowing her professional merit. Through resilience and unwavering focus, Myat has broken these stereotypes, proving that women can lead with both competence and authenticity. Her journey exemplifies how determination and integrity redefine leadership in Myanmar’s corporate landscape, inspiring a new generation of women to lead boldly on their own terms. Myat shares details about her work and personal life in this exclusive interview with TradeFlock.
You’ve been a co-founder, strategist, teacher, and innovator. Which role shaped you most, and why?
Strategist. While each role taught me something, being a strategist shaped how I see systems, people, and problems. It trained me to zoom out before zooming in—to understand long games, not just quick wins. Strategy is where all roles converge: teaching becomes alignment, innovation becomes purpose, and leadership becomes design. It’s not about playing every instrument; it’s about composing the score and making sure everyone knows when to play. That’s what I like about being strategic.
What fintech challenge nearly broke you but built something better?
MyanmarPay faced relentless challenges — from COVID-19 to political upheaval and natural disasters — each threatening to derail progress. But instead of collapsing, these crises forced us to embed resilience into both our system and leadership. We streamlined operations, focused on reality over theory, and emerged sharper. Yet, a deeper challenge remains: the illusion of neutral ground. In digital ecosystems, blame often falls on the operator, even when friction lies elsewhere. This journey taught us that resilience also means navigating imbalance, taking accountability, and reshaping trust in an evolving landscape.
What’s the most valuable global lesson you’ve brought back to Myanmar?
Working across Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia for a regional role before had taught me that business success isn’t just about product-market fit; it’s about cultural fluency. In Thailand, relationships take time but build deep loyalty. In Cambodia, speed and opportunism drive early wins. Laos values patience and quiet consistency. And in Myanmar, trust is earned through grit and resilience. The biggest lesson? One strategy rarely fits all. You need to adapt to the rhythm of each market.
How do you balance profit with purpose in your work?
I don’t see them as opposing forces. The most important part in impact projects is sustainability. I’ve done internationally funded impact projects before, and I’ve seen how they can fail if they don’t have a commercial perspective to survive on their own after the grants dry up. In Myanmar’s context, digital inclusion is the business case. Our job is to design systems where the impact we target grows alongside commercial returns; that’s what keeps the impact going beyond launch phases or donor cycles. Take my recent MMQR project as an example. Some ask, “Why charge MDR rates if you want mass adoption? Shouldn’t it be free?” We did make MDR free for SMEs during the first year. But merchant categories like F&B and hotels, they pay different MDR rates based on their ability to contribute to system sustainability. Think of impact as a road trip: the project is the vehicle, and banks, merchants, and consumers are passengers. Though they don’t pay the cost of vehicle directly, everyone needs to fuel the journey to be continued. That’s why commerce isn’t the enemy of impact — it’s the fuel.
What’s the hardest ‘no’ you’ve said, and what did it teach you?
My hardest “no” was to my chairman. In Myanmar, saying no to your boss, especially someone at the top, is culturally uncomfortable. But I’ve always prioritised operational effectiveness over politics. That sometimes means making unpopular calls. I don’t mind being disliked if it protects the integrity of the work. Still, pushing back on leadership isn’t easy. It taught me that strategic clarity requires more than knowing what’s right; it demands the courage to stand by it, even at personal risk.
How do you define your impact beyond numbers?
I measure personal impact by what endures. If a product outlasts me, if a policy I helped shape becomes industry standard, if people I mentored are now building things I never imagined — that’s impact. KPIs are necessary, but legacy is built on people, systems, and mindset shifts.
