good morning. Mastercard believes the next wave of AI will not only help analyze transactions, but also help businesses run.
The payments giant is building what it calls a “virtual executive cadre.” This is a group of AI agents that aim to provide small and medium-sized businesses with financial and operational insights typically reserved for large corporations.
The first digital executive, effectively a CFO, will be launched later this year through Mastercard’s network of financial institutions, accounting firms and software partners.
“Many small business owners feel hamstrung by being CEO, CFO, and COO all at once,” Mark Barnett, Mastercard’s global head of small business, told me.
For Mastercard, which ranks No. 152 on the Fortune 500 and processed 175 billion transactions on its network last year, the initiative represents a broader change, going beyond payments to help shape the intelligence behind company operations. You can read more about our conversation with Barnett about Mastercard’s virtual CFO here.
The timing may be critical for small businesses, which support the U.S. economy and continue to grapple with economic uncertainty. U.S. small business confidence fell again last month, falling to 98.8 in February from 99.3 in January, according to a report released Tuesday by the National Federation of Independent Business. The net share of owners expecting real sales growth fell by 8 points, erasing the strong gains seen earlier this year.
At the same time, many small businesses cannot afford to hire a full-time financial officer with the expertise to help them navigate an uncertain environment. Instead, they are increasingly turning to fractional or virtual CFOs, and this trend is growing rapidly. The global virtual CFO market is expected to grow from approximately $4.7 billion in 2026 to more than $10 billion by 2035.
Cheryl estrada
sheryl.estrada@fortune.com
leader board
Jeremy Papin plans to step down from his role as CFO. Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. According to the company, this was due to personal reasons. George Leondis, a longtime Nissan executive, will be appointed as his successor on April 1. Papin will remain at the company until mid-May and will oversee the company’s fiscal 2025 financial results. Mr Papan joined Nissan in 2004 as Finance Director of Nissan Australia. Over the past 20 years, he has held senior finance and leadership roles across Nissan’s major markets, in addition to leading automotive sales financing operations and regional management. In 2024, Papin returned to Japan to lead global product and industrial operations management, partnership finance, and M&A. He started his career at PwC.
Olivier Leonetti was appointed as CFO of Equinix Inc. Leonetti has over 30 years of financial leadership experience. He most recently served as CFO for power management company Eaton. Prior to Eaton, he served as CFO of Johnson Controls. Earlier in his career, Mr. Leonetti served as CFO of Zebra Technologies and Western Digital. He also held senior finance leadership positions at Dell and Amgen. Leonetti will succeed Keith Taylor, Equinix’s longtime CFO. As announced last year, Taylor will retire in 2026 after a 27-year career with the company.
big deal
Internal audit functions are increasingly being asked to do more with limited budgets and resources, according to the Institute of Internal Auditors’ 2026 North American Internal Audit Pulse Survey. The percentage of departments reporting budget cuts increased from 11% to 19% between 2024 and 2025, while the percentage reporting increases decreased from 34% to 23%. The proportion reporting layoffs also increased from 11% to 18%, while headcount growth remained roughly unchanged at about 25%.
Financial services was the only sector analyzed where internal audit budgets were stable year-over-year, with 40% reporting an increase and only 9% reporting a reduction.
The study also found that internal audit functions that are closely aligned with organizational strategy are more likely to be adequately funded. Funding rates were 30 percentage points higher among sectors that said they were fully or mostly aligned with their strategy (59%) than those with only some alignment (29%).
Despite tightening budgets and staffing across the sector, the scope of internal audit remains broad, with approximately 86% of chief audit executives overseeing at least one area other than internal audit.
even deeper
“Introducing the silent winner of the Supreme Court’s tariff ruling: Hedge funds create a $100 billion market by stripping importers of their right to tariff refunds.” luck Article by Sasha Rogelberg.
With up to $180 billion in tariff revenue potentially being refunded to U.S. businesses and consumers, investment firms, hedge funds and liquidation experts are poised to profit if the refunds materialize, Rogelberg wrote. Click here for details.
overheard
“The road ahead is filled with future women leaders who are pushing boundaries and paving the way for those who come after them.”
—Citigroup Chairman and CEO Jane Fraser wrote in a LinkedIn post regarding International Women’s Day.
