EXECUTIVE APPOINTMENTS

Meta appoints Derya Matras as new Vice President for the EMEA region

By our African Marketing Confederation News Team | 2024

Matras has experience of the African market, having previously led Meta’s business operations in Africa, the Middle East and Turkey.

Derya Matras has been announced as the new Vice President for Meta in Europe, Middle East and Africa. Meta owns companies such as Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp.

Derya Matras. Photo: Meta

She is taking over from Angie Gifford, who announced that she will be leaving her role as VP of EMEA at the end of this year. 

Matras brings extensive experience of leading diverse markets and teams. She joined Meta in 2015 and led the business in Africa, the Middle East and Turkey, where she built a successful track record of helping businesses to use Meta’s various platforms.

This led to her assuming additional responsibilities for overseeing the UK and Northern Europe regions as well, managing the company’s business operations in more than 80 countries.

Prior to joining Meta, Matras held leadership roles in media, retail and management consulting, primarily at McKinsey & Company. 

Assuming new responsibilities in December

She will assume full responsibilities for her new role in December, working closely with Gifford to ensure a seamless transition.

“I’m delighted to take up the role of Vice President of Global Business Group (GBG) for EMEA,” Matras says in a press release.

“Having had the privilege of working within this diverse and dynamic region for the past nine years, I’ve witnessed first-hand the impact our tools and platforms have on businesses of all sizes.

“I look forward to now working with our partners across the whole region to unlock their full growth potential.”

Comments Nicola Mendelsohn, Meta’s Global Head of Global Business Group: “Since she joined Meta in 2015, Derya has become a leader known for putting people first.

“[She] has deep industry expertise, makes data-driven decisions, and has skilfully built and led diverse markets.”

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