Highnote Executives | Leadership Team & Company Leadership

Date August 22, 2025
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Highnote

COMPANY INFO

Highnote is a financial software company founded in 2020 by John MacIlwaine and Kin Kee. It has approximately 132 employees and is headquartered in San Francisco, California. Highnote develops a unified virtual payment platform designed to handle complex payment processing business flows, offering a developer-friendly open API and integrated issuer processor to help businesses accelerate growth through embedded card issuance and digital transformation. The company's website is https://highnote.com.

9 Key Highnote Platform, Inc. Executives

Highnote Platform, Inc. is a leading financial software company that empowers businesses to accelerate growth through a unified virtual payment platform. Founded in 2020, Highnote provides a developer-friendly open API and integrated issuer processor to drive innovation in embedded card issuance and digital transformation.

The Highnote Platform, Inc. executives bring deep expertise from payments, technology, and SaaS sectors, creating a formidable leadership team with proven records in fintech innovation, operational excellence, and partnership building. The Highnote Platform, Inc. management team features a diverse blend of industry veterans, startup leaders, and strategic thinkers, all committed to delivering client-driven solutions and achieving sustained company growth. The company’s founders, leadership, and management team play central roles in steering Highnote’s continued success and scaling its virtual payment platform globally.

Key Executives

John MacIlwaine - Co-Founder / CEO

As Co-Founder and CEO, John MacIlwaine has spearheaded Highnote Platform, Inc.'s strategic vision, driving breakthrough product development, expansive market strategies, and forging pivotal industry partnerships. Under John's leadership, the company has rapidly become a recognized innovator in embedded card issuance and digital payments, with major enterprise clients and a robust issuer-processor platform supporting both virtual and physical card solutions.

John holds a Bachelor of Science in Engineering from the University of Michigan. His prior roles include serving as General Manager at Braintree, where he developed in-depth expertise in payments and fintech strategy, and he has also advised the University of Michigan's Electrical and Computer Engineering Advisory Council and Avantax’s board, underscoring a track record of leadership in both startup and large corporate environments.

Kin Kee - Co-Founder / CTO

As Co-Founder and CTO, Kin Kee drives the technology roadmap, leads engineering, and ensures platform scalability at Highnote Platform, Inc. Kin led the design and build-out of the company’s integrated issuer processor and widely acclaimed open API, enabling fast, secure embedded finance solutions for Highnote’s partners and clients.

Kin holds a Master of Science in Computer Science from the University of Colorado Boulder. His extensive experience includes co-founding a real estate technology company and working with fintech infrastructure incubators, providing him with deep expertise in system design, cloud architecture, and payments innovation.

Nicola Morris - COO

As Chief Operating Officer, Nicola Morris oversees all global operations at Highnote Platform, Inc., with a focus on seamless product delivery, compliance, and customer success. Nicola has streamlined processes across operational departments, slashing time-to-market for new programs by 40% and spearheading the growth of risk, compliance, and vendor management functions.

Nicola earned her BA from Wellesley College and brings more than 15 years of leadership in fintech and payments, having served as President of Emerging Markets and Chief Corporate Development Officer at WEX Inc., and held key strategy roles at Verizon, including Vice President of Corporate Strategy and Chief Marketing Officer.

Jing Yi - CFO

Jing Yi serves as Chief Financial Officer for Highnote Platform, Inc., leading all financial planning, analysis, budgeting, and investor relations initiatives. Jing developed and implemented a comprehensive financial reporting system, improving forecast accuracy by 25%, and successfully raised Series B funding that has fueled ongoing growth and innovation.

Jing holds a Bachelor’s degree in Finance. Her expertise comes from managing financial operations and accounting teams for several high-growth technology startups, where she strategically guided budgeting, implemented financial systems, and built a strong foundation for scalable growth.

Victoria Ku - Head of Product Management and Design

As Head of Product Management and Design, Victoria Ku defines product strategy, user experience, and design standards at Highnote Platform, Inc. Victoria launched the company’s unified payments interface and set of developer tools, leading to a 60% increase in developer adoption and contributing to a strong product-market fit.

Victoria holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from the Gies College of Business at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Previously, she was a Senior Product Manager at Airbnb, where she managed mobile payments and drove major commerce product initiatives.

David Galvan - Head of Sales

David Galvan leads the enterprise sales organization at Highnote Platform, Inc., architecting go-to-market strategies that resulted in a tripling of annual recurring revenue within two years. He has developed critical channel partnerships and directed both domestic and global account management.

David earned a degree in Business Administration and brings considerable experience leading sales teams for major financial technology firms. His background spans enterprise contract negotiations, sales operations, and introducing innovative API-driven payment solutions to Fortune 500 customers.

Akiera Jones - Head of Customer Success

As Head of Customer Success, Akiera Jones ensures that Highnote Platform, Inc.’s customers achieve their goals and have exceptional experiences with the platform. Akiera boosted the company’s Net Promoter Score by 20 points and reduced customer churn by 15% through tailored onboarding and engagement programs.

Akiera holds a degree in Communications and has spent more than seven years in customer success for leading B2B SaaS companies. She specializes in building high-performing teams, developing training resources, and driving close collaboration between customer-facing and product teams.

Julio Gomez - GTM Lead & Industry Relations

As Go-to-Market Lead & Industry Relations, Julio Gomez shapes Highnote Platform, Inc.’s position across target sectors, leads industry partnerships, and builds the company’s reputation through thought leadership. Julio has orchestrated collaborations with major banks and fintech associations, elevating the company’s industry profile and influence.

Julio earned an A.B. from Princeton University and has held senior roles including Financial Services Lead at Splunk and Industry Solutions Partner at Knowledgent. His expertise in strategic partnerships and vertical-specific go-to-market planning drives business development for Highnote.

Jody Soldo - Director of Business Operations

Jody Soldo directs business operations at Highnote Platform, Inc., implementing internal process improvements that have increased operational efficiency by 30%. She led the integration of ERP systems connecting finance, HR, and project management, supporting rapid company scaling.

Jody has a degree in Business Management and draws on her experience directing operations for high-growth tech startups. Jody is a specialist in governance frameworks and business process optimization.

Company Leadership

The Highnote Platform, Inc. leadership team blends deep fintech, technology, and operational expertise to create a strong foundation for innovation and growth. With founders who are deeply involved in strategy and technology, and executives bringing wide-ranging management, product, financial, and operational capabilities, the management team’s collaborative structure positions Highnote Platform, Inc. as a leader in virtual payments and embedded finance. The company’s executive structure supports rapid innovation while maintaining best-in-class standards in compliance, risk management, and client delivery.

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