Financial Markets

Kurt Adams to Succeed Bob Santella as CEO of IPC

By FMinsights||Est. Reading Time: 2 minutes|

New York – May 29, 2024 – IPC, a leading provider of trading communications, electronic trading and infrastructure solutions for global financial markets, announced today that as part of a planned leadership transition Kurt Adams will succeed Bob Santella as CEO. Additionally, Stuart C. Harvey, Jr.  has been appointed Chairman of IPC’s Board of Directors and Michael Chin has been named an IPC Board Member.

Adams has more than 25 years of leadership experience in the financial and technology industries, most recently serving as CEO of Optum Financial. Prior to joining Optum in 2019, Adams was group president and CEO of corporate payments for Fleetcor Technologies, Inc. He has also held leadership roles at U.S. Bank, Elavon Financial Services, Piper Sandler and the ABN AMRO Bank.

“We want to thank Bob for his leadership and partnership over the last six years. With SVP becoming the sole owner of IPC, this is an opportune time for Bob to pass the torch to Kurt, who is well suited to lead IPC through its next stage of growth. We are excited to work with Kurt on this exciting journey, and are grateful for Bob’s contributions to help IPC become the business it is today,” said Jonathan Waggoner, Managing Director at SVP.

“I am excited to embark on this journey with IPC’s dedicated team. Our focus will remain on delivering exceptional value to our customers by expanding upon our innovative trading technology to create a more connected experience, and fostering a culture of customer-centricity to remain at the forefront of the financial services industry,” said Kurt Adams, incoming CEO at IPC.

 “The future of IPC is extremely bright,” Santella said. “I depart with the deepest appreciation for the support I received from our owners, Board of Directors and an incredible team of employees across the globe who strive to deliver the best products and customer service in the industry.”

New Board Positions Also Announced

As part of the executive leadership changes, Stuart Harvey has been named Chairman of IPC’s Board of Directors and Michael Chin has been named an IPC Board Member, effective immediately.

Stuart Harvey’s multifaceted background spans capital markets, financial technology, payments and related software businesses.  He has previously served as CEO of Elavon Global Acquiring and Ceridian Corporation and as president of Piper Sandler.  Stuart has also chaired the board of directors of Paysafe Group and Wageworks and serves as the current Chairman of Flowbird (Paris, FR) and Weave Communications (NYSE: “Weav”).

Michael Chin currently serves as CEO at DUCO and has been a part of leading organizations such as Broadway Technology, Refinitiv, Mantara, TradingScreen and JP Morgan. Michael’s industry experience and expertise for innovation bolsters IPC’s position for future success.