Woodforest Acceptance Solutions names Natalia Leonardis chief revenue officer

Woodforest Acceptance Solutions appointed payments veteran Natalia Leonardis as chief revenue officer on July 6, 2026, as the company scales its acquiring platform. The hire is meant to strengthen revenue strategy, partner relationships and growth across the payments ecosystem.

Why it matters: - Woodforest Acceptance Solutions is adding a revenue leader as it pushes its Switch-to-Issuer model and ISV platform deeper into the acquiring market. - The appointment signals a focus on scaling sales, partnerships and market reach as payments infrastructure competition intensifies. - The move also reflects continued investment in leadership around intelligent routing, flexible integrations and modernized acquiring.

What happened: - Woodforest Acceptance Solutions appointed Natalia Leonardis as chief revenue officer on July 6, 2026. - Leonardis will lead the company’s revenue organization and growth initiatives. - The company made the announcement from The Woodlands, Texas.

The details: - Leonardis brings more than 16 years of experience in payments, merchant acquisition, SaaS enterprise sales and go-to-market strategy. - She previously held leadership roles at Nationwide Payment Solutions and Merchant Services Inc. - Leonardis joined CardFlight in 2013 as the company’s first sales hire. - At CardFlight, she helped scale the company from startup to an industry-recognized payments technology provider. - She later served as senior vice president of business development at CardFlight. - In that role, Leonardis expanded CardFlight’s partner ecosystem and built relationships with 10 of the world’s top 20 acquirers. - Leonardis currently serves as co-chair of the Mobile Payments Committee for the Electronic Transactions Association. - She previously served as a Rising Star Advisor and co-chair of NYC LINC for the Women’s Network in Electronic Transactions. - Her industry honors include ETA’s Forty Under 40 Award in 2019 and Wnet’s Emerging Trendsetter Award in 2014. - Todd Linden, chief executive officer of Woodforest Acceptance Solutions, said Leonardis’ payments expertise and leadership make her an ideal addition to the team. - Linden said Leonardis will help accelerate growth, deepen partner relationships and strengthen WAS as a category-defining force in modern payments. - Leonardis said she was drawn to WAS because of its approach to long-standing challenges in the acquiring industry. - Leonardis said the acquiring industry is overdue for modernization and that legacy infrastructure is limiting innovation. - Leonardis said Woodforest Acceptance Solutions’ Switch-to-Issuer model and ISV platform give the company a distinct competitive edge. - Leonardis said she is excited to help build the commercial engine around the product. - For more information, visit the company’s website.

Between the lines: - Woodforest Acceptance Solutions is framing the hire as both a sales decision and a strategic bet on its product architecture. - The company is positioning its Switch-to-Issuer model as a differentiator in a crowded and technically complex payments market. - Leonardis’ background suggests WAS wants someone who can connect enterprise sales, partnerships and ecosystem expansion.

What's next: - Leonardis is expected to guide revenue strategy as Woodforest Acceptance Solutions continues expanding its intelligent payments platform. - The company will likely use the hire to build more partner relationships and widen adoption among merchants and software providers. - WAS says it will keep investing in innovation, infrastructure and growth as it scales.