10 Hoosier Banker March 2015 COVER STORY When David B. Becker, 61, president and chief executive officer of First Internet Bank of Indiana (First IB), launched the virtual bank in 1999, he faced formidable odds. An obstacle course of “regulatory hoops and hurdles” took nearly three years to navigate. The startup cost was inflated to three times the capital requirements of a traditional bank. And Becker himself lacked formal training as a banker, though his background success in finance-related software startups would serve him well. Becker had another advantage in his arsenal: He was and remains a true entrepreneur. All the hyperbolic traits that define entrepreneurs readily apply. David Becker is visionary, passionate and creative. He has a photographic memory, requires little sleep and views setbacks as opportunities. “My motivator,” Becker shares, “is the adage, ‘If it can’t be done, the impossible just takes a little bit longer.’” Becker began creating companies in 1981, when he founded re:Member Data Services at the age of 27. “The first three years, I was the youngest employee,” he recalls. “Everybody I hired was older than me.” The company provided electronic data processing services to credit unions nationwide and was acquired in 2004 by Open Solutions Inc. In 1995 Becker founded VIFI, a provider of Internet services to financial institutions and corporations; the company was acquired by Digital Insight Corp. in 2002. Next he founded DyKnow and RICS, and continues to serve as CEO of both companies. DyKnow specializes in interactive educational technology, while RICS provides Web-based inventory control and point-of-sale systems for retailers. Additionally Becker has served in leadership positions with TechPoint, a change agent for the technology industry in Indiana; the TechPoint Foundation for Youth; the Central Indiana Community Foundation (CICF); and the Central Indiana Corporate Partnership. He supports Indiana universities through board activity with the School of Informatics and Computing at Indiana University; Vincennes University; and The Robert C. McDermond Center for Management & Entrepreneurship at DePauw University, his alma mater. Becker was honored as Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year in 2001, as TechPoint Trailblazer in Technology in 2002, as a Sagamore of the Wabash in 2004 and was inducted David Becker: Enterprising Banker Awards on display mix with turning wheels, a knight on a horse and other business metaphors in David Becker’s office.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTg3NDExNQ==