Matthew Lanford
About Matthew Lanford
Matthew Lanford is Chief Payments Officer and a non‑independent director of Paysign, Inc. He has served as CPO since January 2024, previously serving as President & COO (2021–2024) and Chief Product Officer (2019–2021); he joined the Board in August 2022 and is age 58 as of March 27, 2025 . He holds a B.S. in Computer Science from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and was twice ranked No. 1 in Europe’s Prepaid Power 10 for his work in prepaid product leadership . Company performance over FY 2022–FY 2024 shows Revenues and EBITDA growth with volatile net income and TSR drift ($100 → $161 in 2022, $109 in 2023, $108 in 2024 per SEC “Pay vs. Performance”) .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paysign, Inc. | Chief Payments Officer; Director | 2024–present (CPO); Director since Aug 2022 | Leads Product and Project Management Office; executive director role (non‑independent) |
| Paysign, Inc. | President & Chief Operating Officer | 2021–2024 | Scaled operations; company re‑appointed CEO as President in Jan 2024 to let Lanford focus on product leadership |
| Paysign, Inc. | Chief Product Officer | 2019–2021 | Led product strategy and commercialization |
| InComm Payments | SVP & GM, Financial Services (Vanilla suite) | 2016–2019 | Led consumer‑facing prepaid portfolio; go‑to‑market and commercialization |
| Mastercard | VP, Global Prepaid; Prepaid Product Lead for Europe | 2006–2016 | Drove innovation and European prepaid strategy; product development and investor relations |
External Roles
- No current external public company board roles disclosed for Lanford in Paysign’s proxy and 8‑K filings .
Fixed Compensation
- Paysign’s Summary Compensation Table covers NEOs (CEO, CFO, CLO) and does not disclose Lanford’s base salary or bonus; the company notes bonuses for NEOs were discretionary, not tied to formulaic targets .
- Employment arrangements for NEOs are at‑will with no guaranteed severance or change‑of‑control payments; Lanford‑specific employment terms are not disclosed in the filings .
Performance Compensation
- Company‑wide practice disclosed: bonuses to NEOs were discretionary (no preset performance metrics or formulas), and the compensation actually paid does not correlate with TSR or net income per SEC “Pay vs Performance” .
| Metric | Weighting | Target | Actual | Payout | Vesting |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Discretionary annual bonus (company practice for NEOs) | Not disclosed | Not formula‑based | Board discretion | Cash bonus paid at Board discretion | N/A |
| Long‑term equity awards (company practice, timing) | N/A | N/A | Granted around hires/promotions; not timed to MNPI | RS/Option awards as approved | Timing independent of MNPI; no awards to NEOs within blackout windows in 2024 |
No Lanford‑specific incentive metrics (e.g., revenue, EBITDA, TSR targets) or equity grant details are disclosed in the latest proxy.
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Date (record) | Shares beneficially owned | Percent of class | Exercisable/issuable within 60 days (type: options or stock grants) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 22, 2024 | 113,469 | <1% | 25,000 |
| Mar 19, 2025 | 134,731 | <1% | 25,000 |
- No pledging disclosed for Lanford; Paysign discourages hedging and requires compliance with its Insider Trading Policy (no formal anti‑hedging policy beyond discouragement) .
- Equity ownership guidelines for executives/directors are not disclosed in these filings .
Employment Terms
- Role changes: On Jan 24, 2024, Lanford moved from President & COO to Chief Payments Officer to lead the Product and Project Management Office .
- Director appointment: Effective Aug 8, 2022, Lanford was appointed to the Paysign Board as a non‑independent employee director; as an employee director, he was not expected to serve on committees .
- Company disclosure: NEOs have at‑will employment with no severance or change‑of‑control agreements; Lanford’s specific contract/severance terms are not disclosed .
Board Governance
- Independence: The Board determined Lanford, Newcomer (CEO/Chairman), and Herman (EVP) are not independent; all other directors are independent .
- Committee roles: Audit (Chair Mina; members Triplett, Newman, Henry), Compensation (Chair Henry; member Mina), Nominating (Chair Newman; member Triplett). Lanford does not serve on these committees .
- Board meeting attendance: Four Board meetings in 2024; each director attended ≥75% of Board/committee meetings; all directors attended the 2024 annual meeting .
- Executive sessions: Non‑management directors meet without management; sessions generally chaired by the Chairman .
- Board leadership structure: CEO also serves as Chairman to promote unified strategy and accountability; this dual role can raise independence concerns, partly offset by independent committees and a significant insider equity stake per the Board’s rationale .
Director Compensation
| Name (non‑employee director) | Cash fees | Restricted stock awards | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 (Triplett, Newman, Mina, Henry) | $21,000 | $84,600 | $105,600 |
| 2023 (Triplett, Newman, Mina, Henry) | $21,000 | $104,200 | $125,200 |
- The table applies to non‑employee directors; Lanford is an employee director and is not listed in the director compensation table .
Performance & Track Record
- Achievements: Led prepaid product innovation and commercialization at Mastercard (including Europe) and InComm’s Vanilla™ suite; recognized twice as No. 1 in Europe’s Prepaid Power 10 .
- Company TSR proxy metric: Value of $100 investment → $161 (2022), $109 (2023), $108 (2024), illustrating volatile returns over the period .
- Legal proceedings: Paysign discloses no involvement of directors or executive officers in legal proceedings under Reg S‑K 103/401(f) .
- Related‑party transactions: None in 2024/2023; Audit Committee oversees related‑party reviews .
Compensation Committee Analysis
- Composition/independence: Compensation Committee comprises independent directors Daniel R. Henry (Chair) and Bruce A. Mina .
- Consultant use: The Board has not used compensation consultants historically, reserving the right to do so .
- Policy features: 2023 adoption of an Executive Officer Clawback Policy compliant with SEC/Nasdaq rules, covering erroneously paid performance‑based compensation after Oct 2, 2023 .
Company Performance Context (for pay‑for‑performance)
| Metric | FY 2022 | FY 2023 | FY 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenues ($) | $37,744,780* | $46,002,696* | $56,531,920* |
| EBITDA ($) | $2,794,192* | $3,566,893* | $7,016,494* |
| Net Income ($) | $1,027,775* | $6,458,727* | $3,815,907* |
Values retrieved from S&P Global.*
Risk Indicators & Red Flags
- Dual roles: CEO also Chairman; Lanford is an employee director (non‑independent), reducing independent oversight density at the full Board level .
- Hedging/pledging: Company discourages hedging; no formal anti‑hedging policy and no pledging disclosures—monitor for any future changes .
- Governance: Independent committees (Audit, Compensation, Nominating) and an audit committee financial expert (Mina) are in place .
- Section 16 compliance: 2024 filing review noted some late Form 4s (not Lanford); overall compliance affirmed .
Say‑on‑Pay & Shareholder Feedback
- 2025 agenda includes a non‑binding say‑on‑pay vote and say‑on‑frequency (Board recommends triennial) .
Investment Implications
- Alignment: Lanford’s beneficial ownership is <1% with 25,000 shares/options issuable within 60 days—modest “skin‑in‑the‑game” versus founders/major holders; no pledging disclosed .
- Incentive design: Company disclosures emphasize discretionary cash bonuses and time‑based equity rather than formulaic, externally benchmarked performance metrics—pay‑for‑performance signal is limited, per SEC “Pay vs. Performance” discussion .
- Governance: Lanford’s dual role (executive + director) and combined CEO/Chairman structure present independence optics; mitigants include independent committees and attendance/compliance practices .
- Retention/turnover risk: No severance/change‑of‑control terms disclosed for NEOs and no Lanford‑specific employment contract terms disclosed; clawback adoption strengthens downside discipline but offers limited retention guarantees .
- Trading signals: Monitor Form 4s for any sales around vesting/exercisable windows and committee actions on equity grants (2023 Equity Incentive Plan availability) for dilution and insider supply signals .
Data gaps: Paysign does not disclose Lanford’s salary/bonus/equity grant detail in the NEO tables; board service is non‑independent and without committee roles, per filings.