MCX CEO Davidson Departs; Former BofA Exec Brian Mooney Is Interim Chief

MCX CEO Dekkers Davidson has left the merchant-led mobile payments initiative, and will be replaced on an interim basis by Brian Mooney, a former Bank of America and First Data payments executive.

MCX said Davidson left to pursue "other opportunities," according to an April 28 announcement.  Dekkers joined MCX in 2013 after a stint at Barclaycard, where he worked on that institution's cloud-based mobile wallet.

In a statement, MCX praised Mooney, calling him "a proven leader who has spent a substantial portion of his career at the forefront of payment technology, processing and acquisition. He is the right leader for MCX now: talented, experienced, consumer-focused, and fully prepared to help MCX and its hard-working employees deliver on the company’s enormous potential and vision." MCX did not provide details on a search for a permanent CEO.

Dekkers leaves MCX as the initiative builds CurrentC, its mobile wallet, which is still not in market and faces potential challenges from the gradual build out.  

MCX is also challenged to respond to Apple Pay's growth—particularly as MCX merchants such as Best Buy support Apple Pay. MCX has made exclusivity agreements with merchants, but this week MCX said these agreements were designed to have expiration dates.

According to his LinkedIn profile, Mooney left his BofA job one year ago, after having served for 16 months. That followed his serving on the BOA Merchant Services board for almost four years. He led First Data Merchant Services between 2007 and 2009.