New regional PR hire at Trellix

North Seventy Five has appointed Mustapha Al-Tayech as Associate Director. In this role, he leads all sustainability, energy, and financial communications remits across the Middle East region. Based in Dubai, he moved from Burson, where he spent more than 12 years advising organisations including DIFC and Aramco, on mandates spanning financial-centre growth and investment, the energy transition, key destination and infrastructure projects, and reputation-critical issues.

"I spent more than a decade working alongside Lisa and Iman, so there is already a great deal of trust and familiarity between us,” said Mustapha. “What made North Seventy Five particularly exciting was the opportunity to bring that shared experience into something newer and more entrepreneurial, whilst staying close to the kind of complex, high-stakes work I’ve always enjoyed. I’m looking forward to contributing to the agency’s growth and, particularly, to building out its work across finance, energy and sustainability."

Lisa Welsh, Co-founder and Managing Partner, North Seventy Five, said, "Mustapha's appointment marks a defining moment for North Seventy Five. Our clients are moving into new markets and new sectors, from sustainability and energy to real estate and finance, and they need senior counsel who can move with them. Mustapha has spent over a decade advising some of the region's most influential organisations through the moments that matter most, and that depth of experience makes him a natural fit for North Seventy Five," said Lisa Welsh, Co-Founder & Managing Partner, North Seventy Five.

Mastercard has selected We. Communications as its new global communications partner following a competitive review.

The partnership supports Mastercard’s evolving approach to communications, storytelling and stakeholder engagement as the company navigates a more complex landscape shaped by technology, AI, commerce and shifting audience expectations.

We. Communications was selected for its technology expertise, strategic communications capabilities, global strength and track record helping brands navigate transformation and innovation.

The work begins at the enterprise level, with additional scope, regional expansion and workstreams expected to follow in a phased approach.

Lindsey Bastani, Executive Vice President and Head of We. Communications’ technology sector, will oversee the account with a bespoke team spanning disciplines and the agency’s global network.

Lindsey said: “We couldn’t be more thrilled to partner with this iconic brand and incredible client team.

“The storytelling opportunity is extraordinary, from Mastercard’s unique data and insight into how money moves around the world, to translating the complexity of agentic commerce and cybersecurity into human stories, to building understanding and belief with audiences from developers to the C-suite. It’s exactly the kind of work we love to do.”

Jill Kramer, Chief Marketing and Communications Officer of Mastercard, added: “We’re excited to evolve the Mastercard brand story, with We. Communications as our new agency of record helping us tell the fuller story of how Mastercard is powering new forms of value exchange for economies around the world, in new and different ways.”

The Advisory Ward has appointed healthcare, corporate affairs and government policy specialist, Mike Tegg, as Senior Client Partner, strengthening the agency’s senior health communications advisory capability as their business expands across Australia and the Asia-Pacific region.

Mike brings experience spanning healthcare communications, corporate and government affairs, public policy, reputation, issues management and stakeholder engagement.

He has held senior in-house roles with Johnson & Johnson and Novartis and brings agency and regional experience through WPP agencies GCI Health and Hawker Britton.

Mike joins Senior Client Partner Samantha Razzell, Senior Account Manager Tayo Morris and Strategy Director Alex Abao, establishing the core senior team.