About Us

Primax, founded as T.K. Keith Company, Inc. in 1981, was established as a credit card services company. Today, Primax designs and implements, for financial institutions throughout the United States and the Caribbean, payment card (credit, private label and gift) and merchant acquirer programs, and backs these with the support and services needed to help these programs grow and prosper. Primax offers numerous options for owning or outsourcing the back-office functions of your credit card and/or merchant acquirer programs.


Message from the President

Since 1981 Primax has been providing payment card programs and services to financial institutions and businesses, while our company continues its expansion in both the U.S. and globally. Development of extensive client relationships and a steadfast commitment to service excellence are our hallmarks, and we take great pride in our ability to nurture a close relationship with each client at every level of our organization.

Primax strives to provide outstanding products and services for our clients, a profitable bottom-line for our shareholders and a secure and nurturing environment for our employees.

If you are a current client, thank you for your continued business! If you are considering Primax for your credit card, private label card, gift card or merchant acquirer needs, please explore our site. Send us an e-mail or give us a call. We promise to follow up quickly with customized ideas on how we can help you achieve your goals.

Sincerely,

Ted Keith, Jr.
President & CEO

Board of Directors

Ted Keith, Sr.

Ted was a founder and is a major stockholder in Primax/T.K.Keith Company. He spent his first 27 years in senior operations positions for several financial institutions. He was a frequent speaker at banking meetings and served on ABA committees on the payment systems, as well as acting as a founding member of BancSystems in Cleveland, Ohio. In 1979, he left banking employment and, as a consultant, joined NEBA in 1980 as its CEO, serving in this capacity until 1997. In 1982, he acquired a pilot merchant terminal system from NEBA, forming The Amherst Group (AGI). In 1990, AGI was sold to CoreStates and Primax/T.K.Keith Company was formed to carry on his business activities. Although not active in the company on a daily basis, Ted is readily available to the management team and actively participates in strategic and major policy decisions. He is a graduate of M.I.T., Cambridge, MA and the Tuck School at Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH.

Mary B. Keith

Mary was a founder and is a major stockholder in Primax/T.K.Keith Company. In 1979, she joined in the new venture, supporting Ted Keith, Sr. in a variety of functions necessary in a start-up company. As the company grew, Mary filled a number of needs, primarily in the administrative and human resources areas. Throughout her tenure, Mary promoted a culture based on the concept that high quality service can best be achieved by motivated, happy people. In a technical, growth, action-oriented company, she has always been a strong advocate of maintaining a family environment where individuals are treated in a fair, but personal, basis. Although she is no longer active in the company on a daily basis, she is available to management and actively participates in strategic and major policy decisions. Mary is a graduate of Becker College.

Blair Shick

Blair has been on the Primax/TK Keith Board since its inception in 1981. Shick is a retired member of the Cambridge, MA consulting firm of Arthur D. Little, Inc. (ADL), where he contributed for several years (1974-1981) to a group focused on financial industries, information technologies and regulatory issues. The position involved working with differing financial industry groups including NEBA, ASBA, WSBA and Master Card International. As a lawyer, he was admitted to practice in Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Florida. Prior to joining ADL, Shick served on the faculty at Boston College Law School and served on the Consumer Advisory Council of the Federal Reserve Board.

Leo F. McManus McManus is President of L. F. McManus Company, Inc., a national Management Research and Development organization with offices in Worcester, Massachusetts. Mr. McManus has been consulting for the past twenty-five years, working with large and small firms in the fields of Manufacturing, Accounting, Banking, Insurance, Investment Management, Research, Education, and Health Care. He has worked as a consultant to a number of federal government agencies and U.S. Military organizations as well as Military Academies. His corporate directorships have included Consumers Savings Bank, Amherst Group International, Knapp Shoe, McCue Corporation, and Wolf Coach, Inc. McManus is currently a director of the Higgins Armory Museum, as well as Primax/T.K. Keith Company.


Executive Team

Theodore Keith, Jr., President & Chief Executive Officer

Heading the executive team, Ted has been President & CEO since 1997. Since he assumed this role, the company has tripled revenues and more than doubled employees. Ted's background prior to joining the company in 1989 was managing law enforcement information systems for the state of Tennessee. Under his direction, significant quality assurance initiatives were launched, he was named as the state's representative to the National Law Enforcement Telecommunications System, and was named the state contact for Interpol. Ted's leadership philosophy centers on collaboration, open lines of communication and goal-driven management. Ted makes a special effort to be highly accessible to clients and employees. Ted graduated from Middle Tennessee State University with a B.S. in Biology.

Emanuel Pansa, Senior Vice President & Chief Operating Officer

Manny joined the company in 2007 as Sr. Vice President and COO. Prior to joining Primax, Manny was Sr. Vice President of Operations at Applied Communications Inc. (ACI) Worldwide, where he was responsible for maintaining/supporting the Application Service Provider (ASP) environment. His area of responsibility included: Technical Support, Operations, Implementations, Systems Engineering, and MIS. Prior to joining ACI, Manny was Senior Vice President of Operations at Interpay, Inc. His group delivered payroll processing services to over 34,000 small business clients in 12 U.S. locations. Before that, he held a number of senior positions at Metavante and ADP, including roles as Vice President of Product Management, General Manager, and Director of Account Management. Manny holds an MBA degree from Bentley College and a B.S.B.A degree from Boston University. He is a member of Beta Gamma Sigma.

Stanley M. Linkous, Senior Vice President - Corporate Business Development

Stan Linkous joined the company in October of 1993 as a Regional Sales Executive. Today Stan is responsible for sales, marketing and business development. Prior to joining Primax he worked for Atlantic States Bankcard Association as Director of Sales and The Flat Top National Bank as AVP of the credit card operation. Stan has more than 30 years experience in the card industry and is a graduate of the ABA Stonier Graduate School of Banking, from the American Bankers Association and earned a B. S. in Management from Concord University, Athens, West Virginia.

Jeanne Zaccagnini, Senior Vice President - Administrative Services

Jeanne has been with the company since 1987. With more than 37 years in the industry and a background managing a large authorization call center, she is responsible for our human capital and for insuring that our corporate culture remains focused on insuring a high degree of client satisfaction and that every employee has the opportunity to grow and prosper within the company. Jeanne has been a member of the Society for Human Resource Management for more than seven years.

Paul Roberts, Senior Vice President & Chief Financial Officer

Paul has been the company's Chief Financial Officer since 1997. Previously he worked for public accounting firms in Boston and Portsmouth, NH for twenty years. Paul is a Certified Public Accountant registered in New Hampshire and a member of the Massachusetts Society of Certified Public Accountants. He has a B.S. in Business Administration from Merrimack College in North Andover, Massachusetts. Paul is active as a board member and Treasurer of several not-for-profit organizations.

Career Opportunities

Below are the current job openings at Primax. Please contact us with a cover letter and your resume, for consideration.

News

Monday Mar 11 2013Primax Announces Plans to Acquire Processing Business of NEBA
Tuesday Apr 17 2012Primax Client Conference Promotes Credit Union Credit Card Program Growth
Tuesday Oct 04 2011BluePay, a Leading Chicago Credit Card Processor, Acquires Primax Merchant Portfolio
Tuesday Oct 05 2010Primax Helps Make a Difference for Animal Charities
Thursday Sep 09 2010Primax introduces innovative on-line merchant services support option: e-Rep

Resources

MasterCard

Visa