Charles Jacobson
About Charles Jacobson
Charles Jacobson (age 54) is a nominee for Class III director of Destiny Tech100 Inc. (DXYZ) with a background spanning audit, transaction advisory, and executive leadership; he currently serves as a Business Development Executive at CFGI, LLC, previously was Senior Managing Partner at CFGI, and earlier co-founded and served as CEO of Pine Hill Group, advising on capital markets, M&A, GAAP, and SEC reporting; he began his career in senior managerial audit roles at Ernst & Young and BDO Seidman, holds a B.S. in Accounting from Rutgers University, and is a Certified Public Accountant . If elected at the November 28, 2025 annual meeting, he will serve as a Class III director until the 2028 annual meeting; the Board intends for him to chair the Audit Committee and serve on the Compensation and Nominating & Corporate Governance Committees, and characterizes him as independent from the Company, the Adviser, and Destiny XYZ Inc. .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| CFGI, LLC | Business Development Executive; formerly Senior Managing Partner | Business Development Executive (2024–present); Senior Managing Partner (2019–2024) | Led business development; senior leadership at accounting and advisory firm |
| Pine Hill Group | Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer | Prior to CFGI acquisition (years not specified) | Led day-to-day operations, strategy, M&A advisory; SEC reporting/GAAP advisory |
| Ernst & Young LLP | Senior managerial audit roles | Early career (years not specified) | Led audit engagements for private, pre-IPO and public companies |
| BDO Seidman, LLP | Senior managerial audit roles | Early career (years not specified) | Led audit engagements for private, pre-IPO and public companies |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rubicon Technology, Inc. (public) | Board Member and Chairperson | 2025–present | Public company directorship and chair role |
| Floravista Capital | Operating Partner; Board Member | 2025–present | Private equity firm roles |
| Bridger Companies, Inc. d/b/a Pillar Advisors | Strategic Adviser | 2025–present | Financial services adviser role |
| Coppermine Ventures, LLC | Strategic Adviser | 2025–present | Investment company adviser role |
| Tribexa, Inc. | Strategic Adviser | 2025–present | Financial services adviser role |
| UpDraft Solutions, Inc. | Strategic Adviser | 2025–present | Contract management platform adviser role |
| Exaltaret, LLC | Advisory Board Member | 2024–present | Strategy and revenue advisory firm |
| Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE) | Board Member; Finance Committee Chair; Audit Committee Member; Executive Committee Member | 2023–present (governance committee 2022–2023) | Non-profit governance roles and committee leadership |
Board Governance
- Committee assignments and leadership (expected upon election): Audit Committee Chair; member of Compensation and Nominating & Corporate Governance Committees; Board has determined he qualifies as an “audit committee financial expert” (Item 3 of Form N‑CSR) .
- Independence: Company states he is independent of DXYZ, the Adviser, and Destiny XYZ Inc.; Board limits Audit, Compensation, and Nominating & Governance committees to Independent Directors under NYSE/Exchange Act/1940 Act standards .
- Attendance and engagement baseline: The Board met 8 times in 2024 and all incumbent directors attended all Board and committee meetings (note: Jacobson was not yet a director in 2024) .
- Board leadership: Chairman is an interested director (CEO Sohail Prasad); Board has no lead independent director; Ms. Nelson (independent and Audit Chair pre‑meeting) served as liaison to management .
- Auditor oversight context: Marcum LLP was dismissed Sept 8, 2025; KPMG LLP appointed as new independent auditor for FY 2025; no disagreements or reportable events disclosed; KPMG stated no material financial interests; Audit Committee comprised solely of Independent Directors made the selection .
Fixed Compensation
| Component | Amount/Terms | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Annual cash retainer (Independent Directors) | $100,000 per year | Paid to Independent Directors; interested directors receive no director pay |
| Meeting/Committee fees | Reimbursement of reasonable out-of-pocket expenses for Board and committee meetings (including telephonic) | No per-meeting cash fees disclosed beyond expense reimbursement |
| 2024 actual director compensation (structure benchmark) | $100,000 each to independent directors Mason, Daley, Nelson; $0 to interested director Prasad | Illustrates pay level; Jacobson was not a director in 2024 |
| Expected compensation for Jacobson (if elected) | Eligible for Independent Director compensation (cash retainer) | Follows Annual Meeting when he becomes an Independent Director |
Performance Compensation
| Element | Details |
|---|---|
| Equity awards (RSUs/PSUs/options) | None disclosed for directors; no equity compensation framework for directors described in proxy |
| Performance metrics (for director pay) | Not applicable (no performance-based director compensation disclosed) |
| Clawback provisions (director pay) | Not disclosed for directors in proxy; company and Adviser maintain codes of ethics under Rule 17j‑1 |
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Company | Role | Public/Private | Overlap/Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rubicon Technology, Inc. | Board Member and Chairperson | Public | Only disclosed current public company board; no disclosed interlocks with DXYZ’s adviser or portfolio counterparties |
| Floravista Capital | Board Member; Operating Partner | Private | Private equity; not a DXYZ affiliate per proxy |
| NFTE | Board Member; Finance Chair; Audit Member; Exec Committee | Non‑profit | Governance exposure and committee leadership |
Expertise & Qualifications
- Accounting and finance: Extensive transaction advisory, capital markets, GAAP/SEC reporting; CPA; prior senior audit roles at EY and BDO .
- Audit committee financial expert: Board determined Jacobson meets the definition under Item 3 of Form N‑CSR .
- Education: B.S. in Accounting, Rutgers University .
Equity Ownership
| Holder | Shares Beneficially Owned | % Outstanding | Dollar Range | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Charles Jacobson (Director Nominee) | 0 | – | None | As of record date Oct 13, 2025; aggregate shares outstanding 14,427,988 |
| Hedging/pledging policy | — | — | — | Directors and officers prohibited from hedging/shorting/pledging Company securities under insider trading policy |
Governance Assessment
- Positives:
- Independent director nominee with deep audit and transaction expertise; designated Audit Committee Chair and “audit committee financial expert,” enhancing financial oversight capacity .
- Strong independence posture (committees limited to Independent Directors) and explicit statement of Jacobson’s independence from the Company, the Adviser, and Destiny XYZ Inc. .
- Auditor upgrade to KPMG with no reported disagreements; selection by an all‑independent Audit Committee signals a potential strengthening of audit oversight .
- Anti-hedging and anti-pledging policy applies to directors, reducing misalignment risks from hedging or leverage .
- Watch items / potential red flags:
- Low “skin-in-the-game”: Jacobson held zero shares as of the record date; dollar range “None”; no director stock ownership guidelines disclosed, which may weaken alignment versus equity-holding boards .
- Board has no lead independent director; historical liaison role held by Ms. Nelson, whose term ends at the 2025 Annual Meeting; monitor whether the Board designates a lead independent after the election to balance an interested Chair .
- Director compensation is all-cash ($100,000 retainer) with no equity component; while common for externally managed vehicles, lack of equity exposure may limit long-term alignment absent ownership guidelines .
No legal proceedings under Item 401(f) were disclosed against directors or nominees in the past 10 years .
Related-party transactions involving Jacobson were not disclosed in the proxy; the Board’s independence review is conducted annually under NYSE/Exchange Act/1940 Act standards .