Coming on the heels of finalizing a global partnership with Silicon Valley innovator Plug and Play, Toyota Financial Services on Monday announced its new group vice president and chief information officer.

Reporting to Mike Groff, president and chief executive officer of Toyota Financial Services will be Vipin Gupta, who will lead the company's information technology strategy, development and operations to deliver exceptional customer experiences.

“We are pleased to welcome a leader with such a strong track record of success,” Groff said.  “As technology continues to advance, Toyota Financial Services is constantly innovating to bring the best and most user-friendly products, services, and experiences to our customers and dealers. 

“Vipin is experienced at providing IT solutions that significantly improve organizational capabilities,” Groff continued. “His strength in integrating business with the information technology that drives innovation, improves efficiencies and creates high value solutions, will help TFS and Toyota drive business results.”

In his new role, Gupta will coordinate TFS’ technology efforts with Toyota Motor North America (TMNA) as well as with other Toyota affiliates across North America and around the globe.

“I am excited to join such an iconic brand and bring my experiences and expertise to Toyota, a name loved by consumers globally,” Gupta said. “Information Technology is at the heart of driving business growth and innovation.

“I look forward to making Toyota Financial Services a digital leader and innovator in delivering exceptional customer service that matches the exceptional quality of Toyota brand,” he added.

Vipin brings more than 27 years of experience as a financial services technology leader. He most recently held the position of executive vice president and chief information officer for Key Community Bank Business Unit of KeyCorp, where he has been driving client-centric transformation through core system re-imagination, digital innovation and forging FinTech partnerships.

Prior to KeyBank, he launched multiple digital businesses and was a consulting practice leader at Capgemini and Ernst & Young, where he focused on transformation and innovation in customer management for large global financial services institutions.

Partnership to promote FinTech

In other company news, Toyota Financial Services recently announced a global partnership with Silicon Valley innovator Plug and Play. Together, the companies intend to promote corporate innovation with startup companies offering financial services solutions.

TFS will promote the FinTech Open Innovation Program with Plug and Play in several markets around the world, starting with the United States. The purpose of the program is to streamline startup engagement to accelerate TFS corporate innovation.

“As the largest auto lender in the United States, Toyota Financial Services is uniquely positioned to promote technology innovations that will transform mobility financial services,” Groff said. “We look forward to promoting the FinTech Open Innovation Program, drawing upon the expertise provided by our new partners at Plug and Play.”

Plug and Play founder and CEO Saeed Amidi added, “It is our pleasure to welcome Toyota Financial Services as a new partner in our innovation platform. Their long-standing history and their understanding of financial services will bring valuable insight to our growing startup ecosystem.

“Our goal with this partnership is to help them find the best startups so they can run successful pilots to grow with their business units,” Amidi went on to say.

Any interested FinTech startup companies that would like to collaborate with Toyota Financial Services should contact Matt Helmers from Plug and Play by the end of July.