SILVER SPRING, MD (August 13, 2012) – Merchant Link, a leading provider of payment gateway and data security solutions, is pleased to announce the addition of Ben Jared as Director of Business Development for its retail vertical. Previously Ben served as Area Sales Director for ACI Worldwide, Inc. and ISD Corporation where he was instrumental in doubling their retail customer base within five years.
 
Jared joins Merchant Link with more than 26 years of sales, marketing, and product management experience within the financial, retail, and high tech industries. He brings deep expertise in domestic and international payment processing, payment security techniques, and PCI and PA-DSS compliance.
 
“Ben’s in-depth understanding of all sides of a retailer’s business – from technology to operations – allows him to take a consultative approach that busy CIOs appreciate as they navigate the complex world of payments today,” said Laura Kirby-Meck, Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Merchant Link. “I’m confident Ben will be a huge asset as we continue expanding our presence in the retail market.”
 
“Merchant Link’s solutions have clear benefits for retailers looking for greater flexibility and peace of mind when it comes to payments and compliance,” said Jared. “I’m excited for the opportunity to draw upon my experience to drive growth in this channel.”  
 
About Merchant Link
Merchant Link is a leading provider of cloud-based payment gateway and data security solutions, removing the risk and hassle from credit card acceptance for more than 150,000 retailers, hotels and restaurants. Founded in 1993 and headquartered in Silver Spring, Md., Merchant Link currently enables more than 3 billion transactions annually for some of the world's best-known merchants, providing connectivity to the major U.S. payment card processors. TransactionVault™, our tokenization solution, and TransactionShield ®, our point-to-point encryption solution, mitigate the risk of a data compromise while lowering the cost and effort of PCI compliance. Further information is available at www.merchantlink.com. For our expert opinion on encryption, tokenization and PCI compliance, visit the Merchant Link blog at www.merchantlinksecuritycents.com.