Following a successful period as an Advisory Board Member of the Emerging Payment Association, Rich Wagner will serve as Chairman of the EPA

The Emerging Payments Association has officially appointed Rich Wagner, CEO and Founder of Advanced Payment Solutions (APS) as Chairman of the board. Rich will start his new his role with immediate effect, following a year as an Advisory Board Member.

Rich will serve as a driving force behind the EPA’s mission to advance payments innovation and establish the UK as the global hotspot for payments innovation. One of the key objectives for Rich and the EPA will be to play a driving and leading force in assisting the industry and regulators to open access to the main payment systems, including Faster Payments and BACS at a fair price to non-bank participants. By delivering on this objective, FinTech players and alternative challengers to banks will finally have a level playing field to compete and drive innovation in payments, aligning to the mission of the EPA.

As the Founder of an alternative leading financial services provider, Rich understands the urgency for such changes in this area and is a keen commentator on the space. APS was the first non-bank issuer to gain MasterCard membership and was also the first non-bank to offer banking services via the Post Office. Rich has a wealth of industry knowledge having served in senior roles at Barclaycard and Visa, and currently represents e-money institutions as a Board Member at the Euro Retail Payments Board under the European Central Bank. Having been actively involved in developing and managing businesses strategies to enhance payments processes, Rich’s experience will continue to be invaluable to the board.

Rich Wagner comments: “It is an honour to Chair the EPA Advisory Board, which includes some of the greatest thinkers and leaders in payments today. Under the EPA remit, I, along with the rest of the board take great responsibility to drive positive change in the industry that we work. We look to be the leading association that will create a foundation for innovation to thrive for those emerging and established payment companies we serve. “

Tony Craddock, Director General of the EPA, said: “I am delighted that Rich has been appointed as Chairman of the association. He has a passion for our core objectives of developing a growing and thriving community where we can drive change. I am confident that Rich will act as the voice of the EPA, pursuing our mission to seek safe, yet simplified regulation and a more level playing field to enhance competition and innovation.”