Paybefore Honors Innovation in Orlando, Announces Europe Winners

Read about our winners and view event photos.

The Paybefore Awards Europe ceremony will be held during Prepaid Expo Europe on 18 April in London. Best-in-Category honorees will be announced for the first time.

On March 4, Paybefore celebrated 72 programs in 23 categories, naming for the first time Best-in-Category honorees at the 7^th Annual Paybefore Awards Ceremony, which capped off the first day of Prepaid Expo USA in Orlando, Fla.

This year—for the very first time—there was a sixth judge, consisting of the votes of visitors to Paybefore.com, who participated in the selection of the Best-in-Category winners. In all, more than 3,200 people voted, and their votes made the difference in the Best in Category choice in nine categories.

“It’s a dynamic time in electronic payments. Our Paybefore Awards winners are innovators that solve payments problems, reach new consumers and advance the industry,” said Loraine DeBonis, Paybefore editor-in-chief.

“As the world changes, so do the payment and money management needs of individuals, businesses and government agencies,” added Marilyn Bochicchio, Paybefore’s CEO. “Paybefore Awards recognizes the organizations that use financial services to make people’s lives better, which is why it is so exciting for us to honor those who champion innovation and excellence.”

2013 Paybefore Awards Best-in-Category Winners

Brooks Smith and Roy Sosa Honored for Industry Achievement

The final awards of the night were for Industry Achievement—Paybefore’s highest honor given to individuals who advance the industry through innovation and advocacy. A panel of five past winners selected Brooks Smith, president and CEO, InComm; and Roy Sosa, co-founder and CEO, Rȇv Worldwide, as this year’s winners.

“Brooks started InComm in his garage in 1992, and beginning with long distance phone cards, has pioneered the growth of the prepaid industry to encompass a wide variety of products that benefit consumers, retailers and partners,” said Bochicchio. “And while Brooks’ resume as the leader of InComm is impressive, it’s not the only thing that prompted the judges to select him as an Industry Achievement Winner. Instead it was Brooks’ leadership outside the office, talking to regulators and lawmakers, particularly in New Jersey, to bring about much needed changes to a law that stood to damage the entire industry and leave consumers without the products they want.”

Sosa was recognized for his trailblazing work in bringing financial tools to unbanked consumers around the world. In addition to implementing 38 programs in 12 countries, Sosa is committed to working with regulators in a variety of markets, most recently speaking at the G20 meetings in Los Cabos, Mexico. “As a leading advocate for underserved consumers, Sosa first championed prepaid in the United States and now is doing so in Latin America and beyond,” said DeBonis.

“We are proud to recognize these two pioneers of prepaid for their amazing work to move the industry forward,” she said.

Winners who are attending Prepaid Expo who haven’t already received their trophies should pick them up at Paybefore booth #643 in the exhibit hall. Also stop by the booth during the show to enter a drawing for an iPad mini. A winner will be announced at the conclusion of the conference.

Paybefore Awards Europe Winners Announced

On March 4 Paybefore also announced winners in its 2^nd annual Paybefore Awards Europe. Below is a list of distinguished winners, who were selected by a five-judge panel, including Andrew Johnson, director general, UKGCVA; Siobhan Moore, senior associate, Locke Lord and UKGCVA board member; Dr. Hugo Godschalk, PaySys Consultancy GmbH, managing director/partner; Prepaid Forum Deutschland, founder, as well as Paybefore’s Bochicchio and DeBonis.

Join us at Prepaid Expo Europe where we will announce the Best in Category winners. (Register with Paybefore’s discount code XU2740PAYB4 to save 10%).