Delisle Advisory Group co-founder Andrew Auerbach to join the bank as group executive
Andrew Auerbach, co-founder of Delisle Advisory Group, will join National Australia Bank (NAB) as head of business and private banking, according to The Globe and Mail.
Auerbach will succeed Rachel Slade, who will depart by July 1. He is set to begin his role on June 16, pending regulatory approvals and securing a work permit.
Auerbach co-founded Delisle with his wife, Jean Blacklock, more than a year ago.
He was previously EVP and head of BMO Private Wealth Canada and has worked in various brokerage and investment counselling roles across Canada and Asia during his 21-year tenure at BMO.
In an interview with Wealth Professional, he stated, “When I retired, it was an opportunity for me to really stand back and assess the marketplace in Canada relative to other markets, particularly in the US,” he said.
“I really saw an opportunity to bring an independent, advisor-owned firm to Canada, very much focused on fiduciary standards, where all the decisions revolve around what's in the best interests of clients.”
Delisle, which positions itself as a disruptor in the wealth management industry, has not disclosed its assets under management.
The firm appointed Sandra Henderson, its current chief operating officer, as its new chief executive officer. She will assume the role pending regulatory approval.
Henderson stated she aims to continue Delisle’s commitment to increasing awareness of the fiduciary standard model, where advisers must prioritize their clients’ interests over their own.
Delisle was founded after Auerbach examined the rise of registered investment advisory (RIA) firms in the US. In Canada, a similar model operates under discretionary investment counselling firms, of which there are between 350 and 400.
However, he noted that Canada’s regulatory environment lacks a distinct registration category for RIAs, which has led to increased compliance costs and administrative challenges for firms like Delisle.
“We don’t have a registration category of RIA in Canada, and I do feel that one of the obstacles is that we have a very complex regulatory environment for registration that is expensive and time-consuming,” he said.
While acknowledging Canada’s regulators' investor protection efforts, he described the process as slow and complicated.
Auerbach stated he had not been actively searching for a new role but was recruited by Andrew Irvine, another former BMO executive, to join NAB. He will assist Henderson with the leadership transition before departing.
“We remain convinced that the independent wealth management offering in Canada represents the future,” Auerbach said.
He emphasized the distinction between private investment counsellors, who operate under a fiduciary standard, and broker-dealers, who adhere to a suitability standard.
He also noted that Canada’s investment counselling sector remains fragmented, with many firms operating on a small, regional scale, limiting investor awareness of available options.
Blacklock, a registered psychotherapist and estate lawyer who led family and wealth planning at Delisle, will also be relocating to Australia.
