NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--First Data, a global leader in commerce-enabling technology and solutions, announced today that Ivo Distelbrink will join the company to lead its business in the Asia Pacific (APAC) region. Reporting to Chairman and CEO Frank Bisignano, Distelbrink will be based in Singapore and will also serve on First Data’s Management Committee.
“I am delighted to welcome Ivo to the First Data team as he prepares to lead our business in APAC, where we see significant growth opportunities for First Data,” said Bisignano. “With more than 20 years of global banking experience, coupled with extensive regional knowledge, Ivo is the right leader to take advantage of emerging industry trends in APAC, including the continued shift to eCommerce and mobile payments.”
First Data is a leading eCommerce and mobile technology provider, merchant acquirer, issuer processor, and ATM services provider to financial institutions and businesses across APAC, with operations in Australia, South Korea, India, China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei and New Zealand. Since its entry into the region in 1992, First Data has expanded its footprint to serve clients in 19 APAC countries, including Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines.
Distelbrink will take over leadership for a region in which First Data has a more than 20 year history of offering innovative solutions catered to the APAC market. In 1995, First Data was one of the first non-Chinese companies to build a data center in mainland China. In India, First Data has a merchant acquiring and issuing relationship with one of the country’s leading banks. To address the diverse needs of issuers in APAC, First Data operates a VisionPLUS center of excellence that provides custom development and professional services to financial institution clients within the region.
Distelbrink joins First Data from Bank of America Merrill Lynch (BAML), where he most recently held the role of Managing Director and Regional Head of Global Transaction Services (GTS) for APAC. Prior to joining BAML in 2010, Distelbrink spent 16 years with Citigroup holding various roles, including Managing Director and Regional Head of Treasury & Trade Solutions, GTS; Managing Director of GTS for China; CEO & Corporate Bank Head for New Zealand; and COO and Director of Strategic Planning for Global Corporate Banking in Brazil.
“Having spent much of my career in APAC, I see enormous potential for First Data to further establish itself as a leading commerce enabler in the region, as well as expand its client base,” said Distelbrink. “I am excited to join First Data and build upon the company’s transformation that Frank and the Management Committee have driven in recent years.”
Distelbrink holds a business degree from Erasmus University’s Rotterdam School of Management and is fluent in Dutch, English, and Portuguese. He is married with three children.
About First Data
First Data (NYSE: FDC) is a global leader in commerce-enabling technology and solutions, serving approximately six million business locations and 4,000 financial institutions in 118 countries around the world. The company’s 24,000 owner-associates are dedicated to helping companies, from start-ups to the world’s largest corporations, conduct commerce every day by securing and processing more than 2,500 transactions per second and $1.9 trillion per year.