A Passion for Innovation
At the helm of Citi Prepaid Services is a team driven by an unwavering focus on impactful solutions, quality products and comprehensive client support.
- Drew Kese
Director, Global Prepaid Head - Tim Wall
Group Head, Sales - Ward Schultz
Director, Group Head, Finance - Kevin O'Nell
Director, Product & Operations Head - Mark Harrington
V.P., Client Delivery Head
- Baruch Katz
Director, Group Head, Information Technology - Ed Bates
S.V.P., Group Head, International Expansion - Michael Avon
V.P., Enterprise Risk Management - Thore Vestergaard
Director, Prepaid Market Manager, EMEA Region - Jason Tiede,
Director, Prepaid Market Manager, APAC Region
Drew Kese, Director, Global Prepaid Head
Drew is responsible for the strategic direction and management of Citi Prepaid's operation globally. Citi Prepaid is currently operating or launching in North America, Europe, Middle East, Asia Pacific, and Latin America. With a focus on meeting client needs, over his eight plus years that started at Ecount, he has been the chief business architect behind Citi Prepaid's broad array of business-to-consumer payment solutions. He began his career in engineering gaining significant experience in project management, process improvement, and technical writing while practicing as a licensed Professional Engineer. He also graduated with honors from the Mason School of Business at the College of William & Mary, and holds a Bachelor of Civil Engineering degree from Villanova University.
Tim Wall, Director, Group Head, Sales
Tim has overall responsibility for Citi Prepaid's sales initiatives. Previously he served as Senior Vice President of Sales for Ecount. He has over 20 years of direct sales experience and over 15 years of sales management experience. Prior to joining Ecount, Tim was a Director of Sales for Aspect Communications, a leading provider of CRM software and applications. Prior to Aspect Communications, Tim held several senior sales management positions at Executone Information Systems. Tim holds a BA from Denison University.
Ward Schultz, Director, Group Head, Finance
The head of Citi Prepaid's Finance operation, Ward is a finance veteran who was named the 2008 Philadelphia Business Journal's CFO of the Year. Previously he served as Chief Financial Officer at both Ecount and Fastnet Corporation, where he was instrumental in developing scalable financial systems and rebuilding the finance team to support the company's roll-up acquisition strategy. Prior to his tenure at Fastnet, he was Co-Founder, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer at Asia Access Telecom, Inc., an international long distance telecommunications provider with operations in the United States, South Korea and Singapore. He also served as Chief Financial Officer of Silverline Technologies, Inc. and Capsule Communications Inc. He began his career with Deloitte & Touche. Ward is a Certified Public Accountant and holds a BS in Business Administration from Drexel University and a Masters in Taxation from Villanova University.
Kevin O'Nell, Director, Product & Operations Head
Kevin oversees product management and operations for Citi Prepaid. Previously he served as SVP of Product and Chief Operating Officer of Ecount. A financial services veteran, Kevin was a Senior Product Manager for Capital One, where he managed the company's Young Adult acquisition strategy. Prior to Capital One, Kevin worked in IT and operations consulting. He also previously worked at Sonoco, where he held numerous positions in sales and operations. Kevin holds an MBA from the College of William and Mary and a BA from Davidson College.
Mark Harrington, Vice President, Client Delivery Head
Mark manages Client Delivery for Citi Prepaid, including Marketing, Creative, Implementation, Account Management and Client Relations. Previously he served as Group Head of Marketing for Ecount and Citi Prepaid. He's played instrumental roles in landmark acquisitions worth over a half billion dollars. He co-founded Half.com, the Internet's leading person-to-person, fixed-price marketplace, which was acquired by eBay for $350+MM. Half catapulted to profitability largely due to his vision which evolved the textbook market, earning him eBay's Out of this World Award. He also helped devise "one of the greatest publicity coups in history," according to Time - Half.com, Oregon. Previously, he served strategic marketing roles at Infonautics and Pearson. He holds a Marketing BS, honors with distinction, from The Pennsylvania State University.
Baruch Katz, Director, Group Head, Information Technology
Baruch manages all aspects of Citi Prepaid's information technology operation. Previously he served as CIO for Ecount. A start-up veteran, Baruch was co-founder and CTO of Adapt Media, where he was responsible for developing their innovative wireless media platform. Prior to Adapt Media, he served as a senior technology management executive with major companies such as Intel Corp., Deloitte & Touche, and Lehman Brothers with primary responsibilities for system integration, financial back and front office systems, and web applications. Baruch holds Bachelor and Master degrees in Computer Science from the Technion Israel Institute of Technology and an MBA from Stern School of Business at NYU.
Ed Bates, Senior Vice President, Group Head, International Expansion
Ed is integral to Citi Prepaid's international expansion efforts, overseeing technical implementation. Previously he was Group Head of Operations, responsible for managing the day-to-day operations and strategic direction of Citi Prepaid's Client, Vendor and Cardholder Services. He has been with Citi since 2001, supporting key customer service, client delivery and business continuity operations. Most recently, Ed was in charge of Lockbox Operations, where he managed the production support, project and strategic management for multiple locations. Through his career, he has leveraged his technical background and expertise to innovate operations with leading-edge systems and progressive vision. Prior to joining Citi, he served as an operational consultant for Fortune 100 companies. Ed received a BA from Grand View College, MFA from the University of Delaware and is a certified MCSE.
Michael Avon, Vice President, Enterprise Risk Management
Michael oversees risk management for Citi Prepaid. A financial services veteran, he is a Six Sigma black-belt who merges quality with risk management. Prior to Citi Prepaid Michael managed Enterprise Risk Management for Ecount and was a Senior Risk Manager for Radian Group, Inc. where he worked in Capital Markets and Enterprise Risk Management. Previously he also held numerous positions with The Vanguard Group. Michael holds an MBA in Finance from Drexel University's Lebow College of Business.
Thore Vestergaard, Director, Prepaid Market Manager, EMEA Region
Thore is responsible for the strategic direction and management of Citi Prepaid Service's products in the European, Middle Eastern and African (EMEA) regions. Previously he was responsible for delivering commercial card payment solutions to large corporate and government entities across Europe and beyond. Prior to joining Citi in 2005, Thore worked for Visa International for 12 years where he was responsible for corporate and government card solutions as Head of Commercial Products in the CEMEA region. Thore is frequently featured as a speaker at industry events across Europe.
Jason Tiede, Director, Prepaid Market Manager, APAC Region
Jason is responsible for the strategic direction and management of Citi Prepaid Service's products in the Asia Pacific (APAC) region. Jason began his career at Ecount in 1999, and was most recently responsible for Citi Prepaid's Public Sector business. Leveraging ten years of payments experience, he has focused on developing products and strategic partnerships, was actively involved in launching the industry's first-ever virtual debit card, and contributed to the development of Citi Prepaid's incentive, compensation and public sector products. A frequent speaker at industry events, Jason's areas of expertise include strategic planning, partnerships, product development and financial analysis. Jason is a graduate of Bucknell University.