Ron Congemi is senior vice president of strategic industry relations for First Data Corp. Congemi is responsible for building and maintaining relationships with key clients, associations, industry stakeholders and organizations.

Earlier, Congemi served as CEO of First Data Debit Services with responsibility for all debit processing and STAR® network services for First Data Corporation. Previously, Congemi was senior vice president of Concord EFS, Inc. and president of Concord’s Network Services segment, with management responsibility for the STAR network and financial institution processing.

Prior to joining Concord, Ron was president and CEO of Star Systems, Inc., the largest ATM and PIN-secured debit network he founded in 1984. Previously, he worked for Visa International in a variety of positions, including manager of card products, general manager of Visa Australia, and manager of member development in Visa’s Asia-Pacific region. Prior to Visa International, Ron was an officer with Texas Commerce Bank serving in the information systems and bank card management areas.

Congemi graduated from Lamar University with a degree in management. He has served as Chairman of the Electronic Funds Transfer Association, A member of the Philadelphia Federal Reserve’s Payments Advisory Council, Chairman of STAR System, Inc. and Chairman of Primary Payment Systems. He is the Recipient of NACHA’s Lifetime Achievement Award.