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FIS Inc., one of the world’s largest payment processors, is undergoing more changes at the top.
Jacksonville, Fla.-based FIS will replace its existing board structure, where Gary A. Norcross, chief executive, also was board chairman, with an independent director as the chair beginning Dec. 16. Replacing him as chairman is Jeffrey A. Goldstein, the lead independent director. Norcross was announced in October as leaving the CEO role Jan. 1, to be succeeded by FIS president Stephanie Ferris, but she now assumes that position Dec. 16. Norcross has been with FIS for 34 years and will leave the board then, too.
“Stephanie’s previously announced appointment has been part of a thoughtful succession plan and I am confident that she is the right person to lead FIS into its next phase of value creation,” Norcross says in a statement. “The Board and I believe now is the right time to transition to an independent Board Chair structure, and we are confident that Jeffrey is the right person to lead this transition.” Mark A. Ernst, managing partner at private investment firm Bellevue Capital LLC, joins the board as an independent director. This comes after pressure from D.E. Shaw, a hedge fund, Reuters reported.
The newly restructured board and incoming chief executive will be busy as FIS also announced its operations will come under a wholesale review. The assessment will review the company’s strategy, businesses, operations, and structure with the intent of improving financial results, shareholder value, and client services. It will include examination of FIS’s business structures and asset portfolio.
FIS said it has no specific deadline or timetable for completing the review and it does not intend to disclose developments “unless and until it determines that further disclosure is appropriate or required by law.”
In its most recent earnings report, FIS said it faces an “uncertain macro-environment.” Still, it posted global volume of $544 billion, up 3% from the year-ago quarter.
