# Jeffrey A. Citron

> Jeffrey A. Citron is an American entrepreneur and investor associated with Island ECN, Datek Online and Vonage, which he co-founded and led as CEO. His career spans electronic trading, broadband telephony and a family foundation established with his wife, Suzanne, in 1999. His record also includes a 2003 SEC settlement and a permanent securities broker-dealer association bar.

- **Role:** Co-Founder and Board Member at Charles Lafitte Foundation
- **Organizations:** Vonage, The Island ECN, Datek Online Holdings Corp., KEC Ventures, Charles Lafitte Foundation
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** Port Richmond High School
- **Known for:** Co-founded The Island ECN, an electronic securities trading system., Led Datek Online as chairman and CEO before its later acquisition by Ameritrade., Co-founded Vonage and served as CEO from January 2001 to February 2006 and interim CEO from April 2007 to July 2008.

## Career timeline

- **1988** — Joined Datek Securities as an office clerk after high school.
- **1995** — Founded The Island ECN with a partner; this date is given in Vonage’s SEC proxy and the foundation biography.
- **1998** — Became chairman and CEO of Datek Online Holdings Corp. in February.
- **1999** — Departed Datek and Island in October; established Charles Lafitte Foundation with Suzanne Citron that year.
- **2001** — Became chairman and CEO of Vonage in January.
- **2003** — Settled SEC charges without admitting or denying allegations, paid approximately $22.5 million and accepted a permanent broker-dealer association bar.
- **2006** — Became Vonage chief strategist in February; Vonage went public in May.
- **2007-2008** — Served as interim CEO of Vonage from April 2007 to July 2008.
- **2015** — Moved to Florida with Suzanne; foundation golf fundraiser raised $1 million for Count Basie Theatre.
- **2018** — Family foundation made a $5 million gift to Duke University.
- **2021** — Family foundation made a second $5 million gift to Duke.
- **2022** — Ericsson completed its acquisition of Vonage in July; Charles Lafitte Foundation announced a $1 million gift to First Tee in September.

## Achievements

- Co-founded The Island ECN, an electronic securities trading system.
- Led Datek Online as chairman and CEO before its later acquisition by Ameritrade.
- Co-founded Vonage and served as CEO from January 2001 to February 2006 and interim CEO from April 2007 to July 2008.
- Co-founded Charles Lafitte Foundation in 1999.
- Family foundation made separate $5 million gifts to Duke in 2018 and 2021.
- With Suzanne Citron, matched donations at the 2015 foundation golf fundraiser, which raised $1 million for Count Basie Theatre.

## Latest updates

- **2022-09** — Charles Lafitte Foundation announced a $1 million gift to First Tee for youth development nationally and on the Treasure Coast.
- **2022-07** — Ericsson completed its acquisition of Vonage on July 21.
- **2021-10** — Duke announced a second $5 million gift from the Citron family foundation.

## Links

- Website: https://jeffreycitron.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffrey-citron-128a1b2
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/jeffrey_citron

---

Profile page: https://yespress.io/jeffrey-citron
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-21