Gianni Ottaviano
About Gianni Ottaviano
Gianni Ottaviano (age 53) serves as Executive Vice President — Structured Finance Production at Arbor Realty Trust (ABR). He manages the complete flow of structured loan production, including deal screening, underwriting oversight, closing, and asset management; he joined Arbor in 1999 after five years in the accounting group at Ford Models . Company performance context: as of year-end 2024, ABR’s pay-versus-performance table shows a cumulative TSR of 164 (value of $100 invested on 12/31/2019 with dividends reinvested) versus 80 for FTSE Nareit Mortgage REITs; ABR reported 2024 net income of $283.9 million and distributable earnings of $358.0 million .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arbor Realty Trust | EVP — Structured Finance Production | 1999–present | Manages end‑to‑end structured loan production; oversees multifamily structured transactions sourced by the national sales team; responsibilities span screening, underwriting, deal management, closing, and asset management . |
| Ford Models | Accounting group | Five years prior to 1999 | Early-career accounting experience prior to joining Arbor . |
External Roles
- Not disclosed in ABR’s proxy biography for Mr. Ottaviano .
Fixed Compensation
| Component | Status for Mr. Ottaviano |
|---|---|
| Base salary | Not disclosed (ABR’s executive compensation tables cover only Named Executive Officers (NEOs): CEO, CFO, and three most highly compensated executives for 2024; Mr. Ottaviano is not listed among NEOs) . |
| Target bonus % / actual bonus | Not disclosed for Mr. Ottaviano; NEO cash incentive awards are discretionary (except CEO under separate agreement) . |
| Perquisites/benefits | Not disclosed for Mr. Ottaviano; company-wide plans include 401(k) with match, insurance benefits; details provided for NEOs . |
Performance Compensation
| Incentive type | Metric structure | Vesting / payout | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual cash incentive (non-CEO) | No preset performance grid disclosed for 2024 (committee determines based on responsibilities and contributions); CEO has formulaic goals (DEPS, capital growth, balance sheet, efficiency, portfolio risk) . | Paid annually | ABR emphasizes “at risk” pay and pay‑for‑performance culture . |
| Stock-based awards (restricted stock/RSUs) | Long-term equity to align interests with stockholders . | Typical grants vest over multiple years; 2025 grants for employees/NEOs: one‑third at grant, one‑third on each of first and second anniversaries; unvested shares receive cash dividends . | Company has traditionally used restricted stock; options permitted but none granted to date . |
Note: Specific award amounts, metric weightings, and vesting schedules for Mr. Ottaviano are not disclosed; tables above describe ABR’s program design as it applies broadly to executives .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Ownership metric | Detail |
|---|---|
| Common shares beneficially owned | 151,634 shares (<1%) . |
| Special Voting Preferred shares (paired with OP Units) | 2,136 shares (<1%); paired OP Units are redeemable for cash or, at ABR’s option, shares of common stock on a 1:1 basis . |
| Total voting shares beneficially owned | 153,770 (<1%) . |
| Vested vs. unvested shares | Not disclosed for Mr. Ottaviano (unvested award detail tables provided only for NEOs) . |
| Options (exercisable/unexercisable) | Not disclosed for Mr. Ottaviano; ABR states it has not granted options to date . |
| Pledging/hedging | Prohibited for covered employees (includes executive officers); policy also prohibits trading in derivatives on ABR stock . |
| Stock ownership guidelines | As of March 6, 2025, executives with EVP title and Section 16 officers must maintain ABR stock valued at 2x base salary by December 31, 2027; NEOs at 5x salary . |
| Section 16 compliance | ABR reports all required insider filings were timely for 2024 . |
Employment Terms
| Term | Detail |
|---|---|
| Employment start/date in role | Began at Arbor in 1999; currently EVP — Structured Finance Production . |
| Contract/severance | Not disclosed for Mr. Ottaviano. ABR states NEOs (other than the CEO) have no employment, severance, or change‑of‑control agreements; they are employed at will, with restricted stock that accelerates on change‑of‑control per award agreements (NEO disclosure) . |
| Clawback | Executive officer clawback policy to recover erroneously awarded incentive compensation upon an accounting restatement, per NYSE requirements . |
| Non‑compete / non‑solicit | Not disclosed for Mr. Ottaviano; a separate non‑competition agreement exists between ABR, ACM, and the CEO related to business lines, not individual EVP contracts . |
| Insider trading policy | Enforced; covered persons are restricted from derivatives, pledging, and hedging; Regulation FD policy in place . |
| Ownership guideline timing | Compliance measured each December 31; EVP guideline compliance by December 31, 2027 . |
Investment Implications
- Alignment and selling pressure: Mr. Ottaviano beneficially owns 153,770 total voting shares (<1%), indicating meaningful but non‑controlling alignment; ABR pays dividends on unvested restricted stock and uses multi‑year vesting (e.g., one‑third/one‑third/one‑third for 2025 awards), which supports retention but can create periodic liquidity windows around vest dates; pledging and hedging are prohibited, reducing forced‑sale risk .
- Retention risk: Long tenure since 1999 and a role central to structured finance production suggest institutional knowledge concentration; ABR’s new stock ownership guidelines for EVPs (2x salary by 12/31/2027) raise required “skin‑in‑the‑game,” aligning incentives but potentially increasing personal capital at risk in down markets .
- Pay-for-performance visibility: ABR discloses specific, formulaic CEO targets, while other executives’ annual incentives are determined discretionarily without preset public goals; equity remains the primary long‑term alignment lever for EVPs like Mr. Ottaviano .
- Change‑of‑control and severance: No individual terms disclosed for Mr. Ottaviano; for NEOs (ex‑CEO), equity vests on change of control per award agreements, implying equity-centric CoC economics also likely relevant to broader executives via award terms, albeit not specified for Mr. Ottaviano .
Overall: Mr. Ottaviano’s long tenure and leadership over structured loan production are strategically important; equity ownership, new EVP ownership guidelines, and prohibitions on pledging/hedging support alignment. Disclosure gaps on his specific cash/stock incentives and vesting cadence limit precision on near‑term selling pressure; investors should monitor future proxies and Section 16 filings for grant/vesting activity and any changes to executive ranks .
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