Nathan Jacobsen appointed CEO of VBP

Former Diverger chief executive, Nathan Jacobsen has been appointed as the chief executive of Vital Business Partners with the firm’s co-founder, David Carney, stepping back from day to day management.

Jacobsen, who departed Diverger following its acquisition by Count Limited, has a mandate to accelerate the firm’s growth and “redefine how professional advisory businesses deliver value to clients”.

Confirming the appointment, VBP chair and chief executive of AZ NGA, Paul Barrett said Jacobsen’s track record of successfully transforming wealth management businesses and his experience in strategy, technology and mergers and acquisitions strongly positioned him for the role.

“Nathan is a highly respected financial services executive and we are extremely fortunate to have him on board to lead this dynamic business. VBP’s vision and purpose is to support professional advisory firms to grow and deliver generational change for their clients and, over the last decade, it has become an invaluable business partner to some of Australia’s best advice businesses,” Barrett said.

“David Carney has done an incredible job of turning VBP into Australia’s leading adviser services utility and we are pleased that he will remain with the business to facilitate a smooth leadership transition and play a key role in the group’s ongoing success.”

In his new role as Head of Growth, Carney will report to Jacobsen.

VBP was established in 2013 by David Carney and David Deegan to deliver a range of outsourced business solutions including financial planning administration, accounting and bookkeeping, paraplanning and mortgage broking support.

In 2023, the group acquired Elixir Consulting, significantly expanding its capability and capacity to provide business coaching, strategy and consulting.