JY

John Yanyali

Founder of First Drop Ventures

Los Angeles, California

Overview

Work Experience

  • Co-Founder & Partner

    2021 - Current

  • Advisory Board Chairman

    2021 - 2024

    Param is the first approved e-money licensee, the first non-bank member of the Interbank Card Center (BKM), the first and only non-bank member of the BKM TechPOS platform, and the only payment institution in Turkey to issue cards under four different card schemes: Discover, MasterCard, Troy, and VISA. Param offers a wide range of financial services to individuals, SMEs, and large corporates; such as issuing, acquiring, processing, lending, open banking, and loyalty solutions across its offices in Ankara, Istanbul, and London. The company is the duly registered trademark of Turk Elektronik Para AŞ, electronic money (“e-money) institution regulated by the Central Bank of Turkey. With its fast, bank-agnostic, and client-centric solutions, PARAM operates 8 million cards across 152 B2B2C card programs, facilitating payments for more than 190,000 merchants including leading e-commerce players and large organizations. The company also offers an employee benefits and gift card system, a loyalty system with instant cash-back at 30 high-street retailers an instant collection with open banking solutions to 800,000 dealers across Turkey. The most recent innovation by the group is a more advanced and flexible approach to BNPL, to serve merchants and customers with better and faster digital lending solutions.

  • Chief Executive Officer

    2019 - 2021

    John, as an experienced CEO, is managing day-to-day operations of JuiceBot & Co. He builds and models a great company culture while providing inspired leadership to his executive team. He also establishes a great working relationship with the board of directors and sets a course for JuiceBot's strategy. John is also tasked with; -Providing inspired leadership company wide. -Making high-level decisions about policy and strategy. -Reporting to the board of directors and keep them informed. -Developing and implement operational policies and a strategic plan. -Acting as the primary spokesperson for the company. -Developing the company’s culture and overall company vision. -Helping with recruiting new staff members when necessary. -Creating an environment that promotes great performance and positive morale. -Overseeing the company’s fiscal activity, including budgeting, reporting, and auditing. -Working with senior stakeholders, chief financial officer, chief information officer, and other executives. -Assuring all legal and regulatory documents are filed and monitor compliance with laws and regulations. -Working with the executive board to determine values and mission, and plan for short and long term goals. -Identifying and addressing problems and opportunities for the company. -Building alliances and partnerships with other organizations. -Overseeing day-to-day operation of the company. -Working closely with the human resource department to ensure great hiring.

  • Executive Board Member

    2017 - 2019

    As an Executive Board Member, John is one of the fiduciaries who steers JuiceBot & Co. towards a sustainable future by adopting sound, ethical, and legal governance and financial management policies, as well as by making sure the organization has adequate resources to advance its mission.

  • Co-Founder and Board Member

    2017 - 2021

    As the Chief Compliance Officer, John oversees and manages compliance issues within Duuple. He ensures that the organization is in compliance with various regulatory requirements and that employees are in adherence with internal procedures and policies. John is also tasked with; -Coming up with corporate policies and procedures needed by the company for compliance. He then communicates these policies and train employees. -Attesting to the company's and employees' compliance with these procedures and policies. -Monitoring compliance as he measure and evaluate the level of compliance across the entire organization. -Investigating any incident or violations for legal or regulatory requirements. -Reporting to the board on everything related to compliance (from policy development and monitoring to enforcement and implementation). John also coordinates with different departments including internal audit, employee services, and risk management, among others, to ensure that compliance issues are fleshed out, investigated, and resolved.

  • Lead Investor and Managing Partner

    2016 - 2020

    As the Managing Director of Jova Digital, John oversees business operations and provides strategic leadership. His responsibilities include developing and implementing strategic plans and company policies, maintaining an open dialogue with stakeholders, and driving organizational success. John is also tasked with; -Developing and executing business strategies to achieve short and long-term goals. -Reporting to the board, providing market insights and strategic advice. -Developing and implementing business plans to improve cost-efficiency. -Maintaining positive and trust-based relations with business partners, shareholders, and authorities. -Overseeing the company's business operations, financial performance, investments, and ventures. -Supervising, guiding, and delegating executives in their duties. -Ensuring company policies and legal guidelines are clearly communicated. -Assessing, managing, and resolving problematic developments and situations. -Building and enhancing the company's public profile at events and speaking engagements.

  • Chief Operating Officer

    2008 - 2019

    John was the Chief Operating Officer of Elektronet Inc., and was also the acting project manager for Elektronet’s international research and development projects under the European Commission’s EURAKA program, a European network for industrial research and development.

  • Executive Board Member

    2011 - 2018

  • Executive Board Member

    2008 - 2010

  • Managing Partner

    2006 - 2008

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