THE DC VELOCITY Q&A
thoughtleaders
MUCH HAS CHANGED, AND CONTINUES
to change, in the transportation world. But one
immutable rule remains: Service providers want
to be paid as soon as possible. There’s another
somewhat immutable rule, however: Getting
paid quickly is easier said than done. Shippers
have little incentive to pony up fast, even
though it is good relationship practice to do so,
especially in a period of tight capacity when it
would seem short-sighted for a shipper to keep
its carriers hanging waiting for payment.
It’s Richard G. Piontek’s job to smooth out the
rough spots in the payment chain. As chairman
of Carlsbad, Calif.-based factoring, or financial
services, firm eCapital LLC, Piontek helps smaller truckers and last-mile service providers—a
burgeoning segment given the growth of B2C
(business-to-consumer) commerce—maintain
their cash flows by getting reimbursed fast.
Piontek joined eCapital in December 2016 after
a multidecade stint that included the presidency
of Redwood Supply Chain Solutions, a division
of Redwood Logistics Inc., and leadership roles
at Crowley Maritime Corp., freight forwarder
and customs broker Livingston International,
transport and logistics giant Schneider, and
DHL’s Express and Global Forwarding units.
Piontek spoke recently to Mark B. Solomon,
DC VELOCITY’s executive editor–news, about
eCapital’s role in the ecosystem, how it developed a niche focusing on smaller players, and
the role that blockchain technology could play
in facilitating the payment process.
QCan you describe how eCapital got started and what services you perform?
A In 1993, our two founders met for the first ime in Los Angeles. Both were originally
INTERVIEW WITH RICHARD PIONTEK
Speeding up cash flow is as important today as it was 20 years ago.
Richard Piontek and eCapital are using today’s tools to get the job done.
Show
me the
money,
ASAP!
