WALNUT CREEK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--YapStone, a leading web-based and mobile payments company, today announced that it has appointed Kelly Kay as President and Chief Operating Officer. Kay, who was previously General Counsel and Head of Risk at YapStone, will be responsible for overseeing the operational aspects of the company.
YapStone also announced that Kelly has been named one of the San Francisco Business Times’ “Most Influential Women in Bay Area Business.” The award recognizes outstanding women leaders in a special edition of the San Francisco Business Times. Nominees for the prestigious award are evaluated on their influence in the industry as well as in their communities. Kay will be honored for her award at a ceremony on June 12, 2014.
“For the past 16 months, Kelly has played an instrumental role in the operations and growth of YapStone. In addition to her responsibilities as General Counsel, she has excelled in leading several key initiatives for the company,” said Tom Villante, Chairman and Co-founder of YapStone. “As one of the largest online payment companies in the world, we are experiencing rapid growth and scaling operations for our future. Kelly’s leadership, payment expertise and universal respect within our company makes her the perfect fit for this newly created role.”
Kelly Kay has over 15 years of global payment and regulatory experience, previously holding senior roles with companies including MasterCard, eBay and PayPal. Prior to YapStone, Kelly served as Deputy General Counsel at The Wikimedia Foundation. Before Wikimedia, Kelly was the Public Policy & Regulatory Head for APMEA at MasterCard International located in Singapore, where she led the Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa regulatory efforts of MasterCard. Prior to MasterCard, Kelly was the Associate General Counsel and Head of Compliance for PayPal Asia Pacific, where she led the legal and compliance team and partnered with the business to expand PayPal’s offerings into numerous markets throughout Asia Pacific. She spent ten years at PayPal and eBay in various locations around the world. Kelly started her career in the payments industry with Banc One Corporation (now JP Morgan Chase).
“This new role is an incredible opportunity to contribute to the leadership of one of the fastest growing companies in the tech and payments space today, and I’m looking forward to working with the YapStone team in our next phase of growth,” said Kelly Kay. “I’m also incredibly honored to have been named one of this year’s Most Influential Women in Business by the SF Business Times alongside so many other accomplished women in our Bay Area community.”
About YapStone
YapStone powers a global web-based and mobile payments platform that is changing the way the world pays. Processing over $8B in transactions annually, the company’s platform powers online marketplaces for multiple partners, including HomeAway™ and VRBO™, and provides turnkey transaction solutions for third-party developers to simplify how people pay for everyday expenses including rent and charitable donations. Founded in 1999, YapStone has offices in San Francisco Bay, Santa Monica, CA and Drogheda, Ireland. In 2011, Accel Partners and Meritech Capital Partners invested $50 million in the company. In 2013, YapStone was named to Forbes’ List of America’s 100 Most Promising Companies.