Young Company – Seasoned Leadership
T. A. “Kip” Hyde, Jr.
President & CEO
A financial services industry veteran, Kip has led Excel since May 2014, having most recently served as a Principal and Director of Red Shark Investments, LLC, a Ft. Worth based private equity advisory firm specializing in lower to middle market transactions. Kip previously served on the Board of Directors for Teletouch Communications, Inc., a regional cellular provider until 2013, having also served variously as CEO, President and COO since 2004. In 2002, Kip was President of privately held, Ft. Worth, TX-based, State Hawk Security, Inc. and GM of the related PCI-Hawk Electronics Home & Commercial Services operating group. He later merged these companies into Teletouch in 2006, creating a combined company with over $140 million in gross billing sales. Prior to Teletouch, Kip was CEO of San Diego, CA-based Greenland Corporation, a financial services systems development company and supplier to his previous employer, Dallas, TX-based, Affiliated Computer Services. While at ACS, Mr. Hyde served in a number of senior management roles, including Corporate VP for ACS’ Financial Services and Telecom divisions, and lastly for ACS Retail Solutions, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of ACS, providing large-scale enterprise retail information and POS systems, along with technical help desk support throughout North America. Kip was awarded U.S. Patent #6,038,553 for the self-service check cashing and automated financial services technology platform now known as Vcom™ and installed in approximately 2,200 7-11 stores across the U.S. In Feb. 2010, ACS was sold to Xerox Corporation for $6 billion.
A 2010 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award Nominee and 2009 Metroplex TBC Tech Titans Award winner, Kip sits on the Board Executive Committee for the ESPN Armed Forces Bowl, and has held various board positions at Mobui, Inc. in Redmond, WA, the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra and the Fort Worth Airpower Council/Foundation, as well as served on the North Texas Super Bowl XLV Host Committee. He holds a B.A. degree in Finance from the University of Texas at Austin.
Robert L. “Bob” Winspear
Vice President, Secretary and CFO
With over 20 years experience as a CFO or CEO of public and private companies with annual sales ranging from $10 million to $650 million, Bob was elected Vice President, Secretary and Chief Financial Officer of Excel in May 2014. Prior to joining Excel, Bob served as the President of Winspear Investments LLC, a Dallas based private investment firm specializing in lower to middle market transactions since 2002. Winspear Investments has made and maintains investments in a wide range of industries including banking, real estate, distribution, supply chain management, mega yacht marinas and hedge funds. Prior to WInspear Investments, Bob was the Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Associated Materials Incorporated, a nationwide manufacturer and distributor of residential building products consisting primarily of vinyl siding and windows. From 1993 to 2002, Bob directed the finances of this $650 million company, yielding an annual rate of return of almost 40% to its investors. During this time, he also led the initial public offering of Associated Materials in 1998, opening at $16.00 per share, culminating in the sale of the company in April 2002 for $50.00 per share, in a public to private transaction.
In addition, Bob currently serves on the boards of directors of Alpha Financial Technologies/EAM Corporation, located in Grapevine Texas, and, VII Peaks Co-Optivist Income BDC II, Inc. a management investment company located in Orinda, California. Bob earned a Bachelor of Business Administration and a Masters of Professional Accounting from the University of Texas at Austin.
Ruben "Ruby" Azrak
Chairman of the Board of Directors and Founder
A serial entrepreneur, Ruby is a founder of the Company and has been a director since its incorporation in November 2010. Ruby was the Chief Executive Officer from inception, and has remained Chairman through the merger with Excel Business Solutions, and acquisition of Securus Payments. Prior to Excel, beginning in 1998, Ruby developed Phat Farm Licensing with Russell Simmons. Phat Farm Licensing was sold in 2004. In 1996, Ruby started the Check Group LLC, a company engaged in the apparel business, and subsequently sold his interest in Check Group to a partner. Ruby is Chairman and a Director of RVC Enterprises, which was formed with his two sons, Victor and Charles. RVC, through its subsidiaries and affiliates, now licenses and produces ROCAWEAR, the ladies sportswear line from the entertainer-entrepreneur Jay-Z. In addition, RVC owns the license for Ellen Tracy Sportswear and Beverly Hills Polo Club. Ruby is also the President and sole director of Lifeguard Licensing Corp. and Lucky Star licensing. He is also active in NY commercial real estate, as both an investor and owner of a number of commercial buildings throughout the NY City area.
Karl Powers
Director
Karl is a Corporate Advisor with over 30 years experience, primarily in the financial services industry, and currently consults for a number of companies in the payments industry. He is the founder and CEO of Active In-Home Therapy, a San Francisco, Bay Area health-care agency. He began his career as an Institutional Investment Manager with Allied Irish Bank in Dublin, Ireland, managing over US$3Bn in equities, bonds and currencies. He moved to investment bank Paine Webber in NY in 1990 before transferring to London with Merrill Lynch. He later was a founding partner of Robertson Stephens LLC’s London office, before moving to San Francisco with that organization. He has a wide range of consulting experience, ranging from restructuring a low cost airline in Mexico to advising professional sports team in London on their capital market options. More recently, Karl has confined his work to the payments industry and health-care. Karl has a Bachelor of Commerce and Masters in Finance degrees from University College Dublin, where he was awarded a Research Fellowship from KPMG. Karl is qualified as a Management Accountant with the British Association of Management Accountants and currently lives and works in Silicon Valley, CA.