First ACH Management Team

We’re witty, good looking and utterly devoted to our craft.

The First ACH Management Team is comprised of industry experts, former business owners and seasoned visionaries who have built an innovative company around a singular goal: to help our merchants succeed by consistently providing them with cutting-edge, efficient, affordable payment processing solutions.

Paul Sabella
President and CEO

As the President and CEO of one of the industry’s most innovative payment processing companies, Paul Sabella brings over 16 years of experience to our growing team.

Mr. Sabella is an electronic transaction processing industry expert, with experience that runs the gamut from Sales and District Management to the development of cutting edge Point of Sale hardware and software solutions. In his current position overseeing the direction of First ACH.com, Mr. Sabella has been able to utilize his vast leadership experience while bringing fresh, innovative ideas to a company that’s enjoying rapid growth under his direction.

In 1989, Mr. Sabella began his career in the credit card industry when he joined the Peach Tree Bancard Long Island sales team. The following year saw him promoted to District Sales Manager of the Baltimore/Washington DC office, where he oversaw the budgeting, development and direction of 13 district sales offices in 8 Mid-Atlantic states. Under Mr. Sabella’s motivating leadership, his sales team quickly grew to be ranked #1 of 120 sales offices in the area.

In 1992, Mr. Sabella founded Cardinal Merchant Services, an independent sales organization that marketed merchant transaction processing services, thus planting the seeds for what would later become the successful development of First ACH.com. Over a five year period, Cardinal Merchant Services grew from a single sales office to six sales offices located throughout the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic.

During the development and eventual sale of Cardinal Merchant Services, Mr. Sabella accepted the position of Regional Sales Manager at Lynk Systems. Between 1996 and 1998, he facilitated the opening and growth of five additional company branches throughout the Mid-Atlantic region.

In May of 1998, Mr. Sabella founded First ACH. Drawing on his experience marketing merchant transaction processing services, he developed a relationship with First Savings Bank, doing business as First Savings Bank Merchant Division. Over the past 15 years, First ACH has grown into one of the industry’s leading payment processing service providers.

Randy Harrell
Vice President, Compliance

As the Vice President of Compliance at First ACH, Randy Harrell brings over two decades of merchant services industry experience to the table. Randy and his team of risk management experts provide our merchants, affiliates, and First ACH.com with increased security and minimized risk through the application of strategic policies and protocol. In addition to his responsibility overseeing underwriting, portfolio risk management, and compliance functions for the company, Randy and his team carefully review each application and constantly monitor thousands of different accounts and millions of dollars in transactions.

In addition to decades of experience in the industry, Randy’s background in sales has allowed him to bring a completely unique perspective to his current position as a risk management executive. As a direct merchant sales representative, Randy gained a deep understanding of the importance of merchant empowerment. Helping every First ACH client take full advantage of bankcard acceptance rules in order to increase sales and grow their bottom line is Randy’s top priority as Vice President of Compliance. He sees each merchant as an individual with hopes and dreams that can be achieved through their relationship with First ACH.

Before joining the First ACH team, Randy served in management and sales positions at Cardinal Merchant Services and Lynk Systems. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Westminster College in New Wilmington, Pennsylvania.

Jason Kula
Finance Manager

For the past decade, Jason has supervised the Finance and Human Resources Departments at First ACH and has overseen all financial aspects of the organization, including treasury, finance, and accounting. As the Comptroller for First ACH and First ACH.com, Jason led the development of increasingly sophisticated financial controls, which enabled the management team to utilize complex reporting tools and take advantage of increasingly powerful financial management capabilities. Jason also played a key role in the rollout of our Automated Clearing House (ACH) payment solution in 2005.

Through Jason’s leadership, both the Human Resources Department and the Finance Department have become absolutely critical to the overall success of First ACH as a company.

By attracting, retaining and motivating high quality associates, Jason and the Human Resources Department have built an incredibly talented, innovative team with an impressive retention rate. By driving the Finance Department beyond its traditional role and identifying opportunities for new revenue and cost savings, Jason has positioned his finance team as a crucial supporter of and partner to the rest of the organization.

A veteran of the payment processing industry, Jason received his bachelor’s degree from the Rochester Institute of Technology and is AICPA certified.

Eric Cooper
Director of Customer Operations

Eric is responsible for the sales and customer service departments at Pathfinder Payment Solutions. Eric’s teams are experts in payment processing and understand the challenges merchants face when striving to work their way through a complicated industry to select the right solution for their business.

Eric believes in the value of a long-term relationship. He ensures his team members take time to understand the organization and the needs of the organization’s principles before recommending any course of action. He champions the philosophy that each customer should always be treated with respect, both before and after the sale and even during moments of challenge.

His entire career has been spent in customer management, on a trajectory from a representative to a department head. Eric has worked for a number of financial services firms, including several in the payment processing industry. Eric grew up locally and attended the University of Maryland.

Brian Dentice
Director of Information Technology

As the Director of Information Technology, Brian Dentice oversees every aspect of technology at First ACH, including FirstACH.com, the Web Interface, telephone solutions, hardware and software procurement, and more.

Brian sees the IT department as the backbone of First ACH, and welcomes the challenge of providing lightning fast, cutting edge solutions that allow First ACH to offer its merchants secure, reliable payment processing technology.

Brian is a true payment services expert with over 15 years of experience in the industry. During that time, Brian has held roles in sales, operations and technology. He attended the University of Wisconsin and holds multiple technology-related certifications.

Seth Troy
Director of Marketing

Seth Troy leads the marketing team at First ACH by driving the company’s corporate brand, communications efforts, website, collateral, and media relations, and by developing and implementing a variety of different marketing programs and initiatives.

Seth has led the First ACH Marketing Department into a partnership position with each and every one of our merchants. His efforts to promote the company brand give merchants the opportunity to take advantage of the most efficient, cost effective payment solutions on the market today. Seth believes that First ACH succeeds by helping our merchants succeed, and by putting their needs first, every time.

A former small business owner with over 15 years’ experience in the financial industry, Seth has provided marketing, product and web solutions for industry giants like JP Morgan Chase, the Bank of Montreal and Signet Bank (now Wells Fargo).

Most recently, Seth led the marketing department at Urban Trust Bank, an innovative financial institution launched by entrepreneur Robert L. Johnson, the founder of Black Entertainment Television (BET). During the time that Seth served as head of the bank’s marketing department, the bank grew from $30mm in assets to over $700mm in assets, ultimately becoming the second largest African American-controlled bank in the entire country.

Seth attended Vanderbilt University and holds an MBA from John Hopkins University.