New York – The Clearing House (TCH), the leading innovator and operator of U.S. payments networks, announced today that Sal Karakaplan is joining the company as Chief Strategy Officer. 

Karakaplan, a banking and payments executive with over 25 years of experience, will join The Clearing House from Truist Financial where he was Executive Vice President for the Enterprise Payments Group, in charge of enterprise payments strategy, and also helped to establish the bank’s payments vision. Earlier in his career, he held executive payments roles at JPMorgan Chase, and MasterCard.

In his role, Karakaplan will be part of the executive leadership team and will work across the industry to enhance and execute TCH’s strategic vision to shape the payments landscape for the future. Responsibilities will include market strategy and growth plans, strategic partnerships, and exploration, incubation and innovation. 

“I’m excited to bring my payments know-how to The Clearing House,” Karakaplan says. “I look forward to working with the TCH team on strategic opportunities to enhance the company’s position as the leading payments provider in the United States.”

“Sal is a great addition to The Clearing House,” said David Watson, President and Chief Executive Officer, The Clearing House. “His payments background and experience in the banking industry, combined with his alignment to our values will be an asset as we develop new ways to work with partners to enhance existing products and create innovative offerings for our customers.”

Karakaplan is the most recent banking and payments executive to join The Clearing House. Earlier this year, Watson bolstered the TCH executive team with the additions of Sheffali Welch, Chief Operating Officer, and Margaret Weichert, Chief Product Officer.

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About The Clearing House
The Clearing House operates U.S.-based payments networks that clear and settle more than $2 trillion each day through wire, ACH, check image, and real-time payments. It is the nation’s most experienced payments company, with a long track record of providing secure and reliable systems, payments innovation, and strategic thought leadership to financial institutions. In 2017, The Clearing House revolutionized U.S. payments by introducing the RTP^® network, which supports the immediate clearing and settlement of payments, along with the ability to exchange related payment information across the same secure channel. These RTP capabilities enable all financial institutions to offer safer, faster, and smarter digital transaction services for their corporate and retail customers. Learn more at www.theclearinghouse.org.

Media Contact:
Greg MacSweeney
The Clearing House 
212-612-9282
Gregory.MacSweeney@theclearinghouse.org