# Bill Wade

> Bill Wade is the founder and former CEO of Company.com, later renamed Vastly, and a strategic adviser at VerticalStack. His career spans hospitality, payment processing, software distribution, investing and advisory work. He founded Network 1 Financial in 1989 and helped negotiate the $325 million sale of Verus Financial Management to Sage in 2006. Company.com ranked No. 10 on the Inc. 5000 in 2015 and No. 5 in 2016.

- **Role:** Strategic Adviser at VerticalStack
- **Organizations:** Company.com / Vastly, VerticalStack, Network 1 Financial, Verus Financial Management, Sage Payment Solutions, Marriott Corporation, iPayment, Gaming Network Solutions, ACG Atlanta, Founder Institute, CoFoundersLab
- **Education:** University of New Hampshire
- **Known for:** Founded Network 1 Financial in 1989., Helped negotiate the $325 million sale of Verus Financial Management to Sage in 2006., Led Company.com during its No. 10 and No. 5 placements on the Inc. 5000 in 2015 and 2016.

## Career timeline

- **1982** — Left the University of New Hampshire to join Marriott’s Executive Management program, according to his LinkedIn profile.
- **1989** — Founded Network 1 Financial.
- **2005** — Became president of Verus Financial Management after serving as executive vice president.
- **2006** — Helped negotiate Verus’s $325 million acquisition by Sage; subsequently held leadership roles at Sage Payment Solutions.
- **2008-2009** — Founded Company.com; ACG and company releases use 2008, while Inc. lists 2009.
- **2015** — Company.com ranked No. 10 on the Inc. 5000.
- **2016** — Company.com ranked No. 5 on the Inc. 5000.
- **2017** — Elected to ACG Atlanta’s board and appointed to iPayment’s board effective December 1.
- **2019** — Company.com announced its STAC platform on February 18; Wade was named ACG Atlanta vice president of programs in July.
- **2021** — Featured on Leaders in Payments and in a SaaS distribution partnerships discussion hosted by Sunir Shah.
- **2024** — Company.com publicly announced its rebrand to Vastly in March.

## Achievements

- Founded Network 1 Financial in 1989.
- Helped negotiate the $325 million sale of Verus Financial Management to Sage in 2006.
- Led Company.com during its No. 10 and No. 5 placements on the Inc. 5000 in 2015 and 2016.
- Founded more than 25 companies, according to ACG and VerticalStack biographies.
- VerticalStack credits him with leading or co-leading 19 M&A engagements and more than 50 asset purchases.

## Latest updates

- **2026-10** — As verified on October 25, 2026, VerticalStack lists Wade as a strategic adviser and as the founder and retired CEO of Vastly; no appointment date is given.
- **2024-03** — Company.com publicly announced its rebrand to Vastly.

## Links

- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/companycom
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/bill.wade.9615

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/bill-wade
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-25