Former Countplus chief executive, Jeremy Wardell, has been appointed chief executive of Premium Wealth Management (Premium).
In announcing the appointment, the dealer group said Wardell’s duties will include growing Premium from its current base of 23 member firms, in addition to managing day-to-day operations.
Wardell will also share responsibility for the group’s general manager role following Helen Bridgewood’s decision to retire after 10 years with Premium and over 24 years in the financial services industry.
Premium said it is recruiting additional support staff, including a compliance and training manager, to assist Wardell in the expanded role.
Chairman Simon Wu acknowledged the contribution Bridgewood had made to the group, and added that the team was looking forward to welcoming Wardell.
“We have a very attractive service offering to larger, independently-minded financial planning practices and have great confidence in Jeremy’s ability to bring new firms on board,” Wu said.
As head of Countplus up until November 2010 when his contract ended, Wardell was predominately focused on acquiring stakes in accountancy and financial planning practices that now make up the Countplus group.
He also brings experience through holding senior executive positions with large investment banks including Citigroup, Nomura and Standard Chartered, and more recently, roles in the advice industry with ING Australia.
Premium abolished its chief executive role in February 2010, a month before the then chief executive Chris Saunders moved to Wilson HTM Investment Group to head up its financial planning division.
The role was subsequently revived and expanded to include some of the general manager’s responsibilities.
The Premium dealer group was established in 2000 after a group of advisers broke away from Count Financial, which had hired Wardell in 2006 to lead its Countplus business.
