Chris Uriarte

Chris brings more than 25 years of diverse and specialized experience to Glenbrook, previously serving as a C-level executive at four public companies and holding senior leadership positions at global professional services, payments, and fintech firms. His expertise spans global payments, payments strategy and operations, risk management, fraud prevention, technology, product development, and solutions architecture. Throughout his career, he has worked extensively across international markets, helping organizations develop, deploy, and operate payment products and capabilities around the world.

He spent eleven years as Chief Technology Officer and Head of International Development at Retail Decisions (ReD), a London-based global payment processing and fraud prevention company later acquired by ACI Worldwide. He led the company’s product, research and development, technology, and strategy organizations during a period of significant international growth that included the company’s IPO and eventual sale to private equity. His work included the development and deployment of payment processing and fraud prevention technology supporting major merchants, financial institutions, and payment providers across global markets.

Chris subsequently joined American Express as Vice President and Head of International Operations and Implementations, where he led the deployment of new payment products and services into global markets, with a particular focus on emerging markets and new payment types. He oversaw teams and major initiatives in the United States, Mexico, Brazil, Western Europe, and mainland China. In addition to his globalization responsibilities, he was the executive responsible for delivering one of American Express’s top five corporate priority programs during his tenure.

He later served as Chief Information Officer and Global Consulting Practice Leader at Aon within its Cyber Solutions Group. In this role, he led several global operational and consulting practices focused on risk management, cybersecurity, technology strategy, and new product development, working with large enterprises facing complex technology and risk challenges.

Most recently, Chris was Chief Information Officer and Senior Vice President of Data Sciences and Technology at Acima Corporation, a $2.4 billion fintech specializing in innovative payment services and financing used by more than 15,000 merchants. His responsibilities included digital product development, payments, risk management, fraud prevention, enterprise technology, and data sciences. He also served as an officer of Acima’s parent company, Rent-A-Center Corporation.

Chris is a frequent industry speaker and keynote presenter at global payments and fintech conferences. He is also co-host of Glenbrook’s Payments on Fire podcast, where he speaks with industry leaders about developments shaping the global payments ecosystem. For several years, he hosted Mastercard’s FraudWatch series and has been quoted extensively in industry and mainstream media, including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, NPR, and the Financial Times.

He has held board and advisory positions with numerous payments companies and industry organizations, including the Merchant Risk Council, Direct Response Forum (DRF), ClearSale Corporation, Oracle Corporation, Golden Gate Software, and Fusion Recruiting Labs. He currently serves as Co-Chair of the Merchant Risk Council’s Global Payments Committee.

Chris is a recipient of the InfoWorld CTO 25 Award, recognizing 25 of the country’s most innovative technology executives. He has also received two of American Express’s most prestigious employee honors: the American Express Special Chairman’s Award for Excellence and the American Express Pinnacle President’s Award.