Ecount News & Press Releases

Ecount Chief Executive Matt Gillin Wins The Entrepreneur of the Year Award

CEO and President Wins in the Emerging Technologies Category

Conshohocken, PA - July 8, 2002 - Ecount, the industry-leading provider of special purpose debit cards, today announced that Matt Gillin, the company’s chief executive officer, president, and co-founder, has won the 2002 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award‚ for the Greater Philadelphia region. The elite competition, which was established by Ernst & Young in 1986, is the world’s most prestigious honor for entrepreneurs who have created and sustained growing business ventures. Mr. Gillin won in the Emerging Technologies Category.

"This award is a tremendous tribute to everyone who has participated in Ecount’s success," said Gillin. "That includes our team of employees, their families, and our investors. Like true entrepreneurs, they have demonstrated a relentless drive, burning desire, and amazing commitment to succeed. It is their collective efforts that have created our culture of innovation and our history of growth. In addition to the Ecount team, we also share this award with our clients and partners, who have shared our vision and been integral to our success."

Founded in 1997, Ecount provides a better way for businesses to pay people and for people to get paid. The company enables businesses to replace traditional payments with more cost effective and efficient electronic payments, which are delivered onto special purpose debit cards. Based on client needs, these cards may be virtual or plastic, MasterCard‚ or Visa® branded, restricted for specific merchant spending, or designed with enhanced features, such as ATM access, bank transfer capabilities, direct deposit loading, and person-to-person transfer functionality.

Under Gillin’s leadership, the company has experienced continued and sustained growth, by focusing on large and expanding business-to-person payment markets, such as consumer incentives, sales incentives, employee rewards, and payroll. This strategy has resulted in more than 350 clients, including 23 of the Fortune 100, and more than one million unique customers who have received an Ecount payment. Mr. Gillin was also recognized for building a customer-centric organization, and for successfully growing Ecount’s business during volatile market conditions, as evidenced by last year’s 273% revenue growth rate.

As a regional winner, Mr. Gillin will now participate in one of several national Entrepreneur of the Year categories and the National Entrepreneur of the Year competition at the Ernst & Young EOY Awards Gala in Palm Springs, California, November 21-24, 2002.

About Ecount
Ecount is an industry-leading electronic payments company that provides a better way for businesses to pay people, and for people to get paid. Through their proprietary payments platform and extensive line of special purpose debit products, Ecount enables businesses to replace traditional paper payments with more cost-effective and efficient electronic payments that are delivered onto virtual and plastic debit cards. To date, more than 350 companies, including 23 of the Fortune 100, have utilized one of Ecount's e-payment products, and more than one million customers have received an Ecount payment. Founded in 1997, Ecount is a privately held company headquarted in Conshohocken, PA. The Company is a Forbes "Best of the Web" award winner, a strategic marketing alliance partner of MasterCard‚ International, and inventor of the first virtual MasterCard card.