Lance Ott

Lance Ott is a 16 year veteran of the financial services industry. His core competency and expertise covers every aspect of banking and electronic payment processing. Lance has extensive experience in technology and merchant services including Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), credit and debit card processing, PCI security, fraud control, chargeback management, technology implementation and payments consulting. Lance has a broad knowledge of the industry and has continuously demonstrated mastery not only of sales, but also pricing and interchange; business process, operations and workflow; products and solutions; risk; and regulatory, compliance and security matters.

Lance is the former Vice President of National Bank of California Merchant Services and currently operates as CEO of Guardian Data Systems. Guardian was created specifically to provide secure, reliable and transparent financial services for our cannabis community. Lance is a cancer survivor and fierce advocate of alternative medicine, including medicinal cannabis. Lance firmly believes that safe access to medical cannabis must be provided as medicine for any patient in need. 

Since the inception of Guardian Data Systems, Lance has become a ubiquitous presence at cannabis industry conferences and events produced by the National Cannabis Industry Association, International Cannabis Association/Cannabis World Conference, MMJ Business Daily, Native Nations Events and Secure Cash Transport Association. He has been regularly featured in national media and his profile is highlighted in the third edition of ArcView’s Annual State of Legal Marijuana Markets Report.  Last year, Mr. Ott was ranked #38 in the top 100 most influential cannabis business executives by Cannabis Business Executive. 

Lance has methodically constructed a network of cannabis friendly banking institutions, processors and software/hardware developers to provide all manner of medical cannabis commercial concerns with a safe, legitimate venue for all transactions and logistical challenges.  He has positioned himself to be among the preeminent professionals for a very unique and complex business model.  His conviction is that proper regulation coupled with appropriate technology applied to an ever evolving market will result in a thriving and unimpeachable industry. 

Lance has demonstrated the courage of his convictions by fashioning a network infrastructure of cannabis friendly banks, institutions, processors and technology providers in order to provide the cannabis industry with a safe, legitimate venue for all commerce related and logistical challenges they may encounter.  Lance has taken it upon himself to offer preeminent expertise for a unique and complex business model. Lance believes that proper regulation coupled with technology will bring credibility, legitimacy and transparency to our emerging and evolving industry.

Lance is currently serving his second term on the Board of Directors for the National Cannabis Industry Association and has served as a member of the ethics subcommittee. Guardian Data Systems is a Sustaining Member of the NCIA. Lance is also a Certified Payments Professional “CPP” as certified through the Electronic Transactions Association (ETA), which is the largest association in the payments industry. The purpose of the ETA is to influence, monitor and help shape the merchant acquiring industry by providing leadership through education, advocacy and the exchange of information.