Paul Elenio
About Paul Elenio
Paul Elenio, 57, is Chief Financial Officer of Arbor Realty Trust (ABR), a role he has held since 2005 after joining Arbor’s predecessor in 1991; he previously worked in auditing at Ernst & Young. As CFO he oversees financial reporting, tax planning, budgeting, capital allocation, and investor relations . Company performance context during his tenure (selected pay-versus-performance disclosures): ABR cumulative TSR values (value of initial $100) and financial outcomes are shown below .
| Metric | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Company TSR (value of $100) | 110 | 153 | 122 | 158 | 164 |
| FTSE Nareit Mortgage REITs TSR (value of $100) | 81 | 94 | 69 | 80 | 80 |
| Net Income ($) | 196,157,197 | 377,806,794 | 353,827,809 | 400,556,657 | 283,918,655 |
| Distributable Earnings ($) | 234,866,670 | 313,728,736 | 405,695,825 | 452,478,707 | 358,019,878 |
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arbor Realty Trust / Arbor National/ACM | Chief Financial Officer | 2005–present | Oversees financial reporting, tax planning, budgeting, capital utilization, and IR |
| Arbor National Holdings/ACM | Senior Vice President, Finance | 2004 | Finance leadership pre-REIT consolidation |
| Arbor National Holdings/ACM | Vice President, Finance | 2002 | Finance leadership |
| Arbor National Holdings/ACM | Vice President, Controller | 1995 | Controller responsibilities as platform scaled |
| Arbor National Holdings | Joined company | 1991 | Early finance roles supporting growth |
| Ernst & Young | Auditor (prior to Arbor) | — | Public accounting/audit experience |
External Roles
No public company directorships or external roles are disclosed for Mr. Elenio in the proxy biography .
Fixed Compensation
- 2025 action: NEO base salaries (ex-CEO) unchanged from 2024 .
| Component | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base salary ($) | 750,000 | 750,000 | 750,000 |
| All other compensation ($) | 6,150 | 6,600 | 6,870 |
Notes:
- NEO benefits include 401(k) match, $250,000 basic life insurance, and LTD coverage up to $120,000/year; Messrs. Elenio, Katz, and van der Reis received an additional $250,000 life policy due to plan participation .
Performance Compensation
- Structure: ABR emphasizes at-risk pay; for NEOs (other than CEO), the Compensation Committee did not establish specific performance-based goals in 2024; awards reflect individual contribution and company performance (discretionary framework) .
| Annual cash incentive ($) | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bonus paid | 1,100,000 | 1,400,000 | 1,250,000 |
| Stock-based awards | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grant date fair value ($) | 500,425 | 494,926 | 504,057 |
| Shares granted and date | — | 39,032 (3/14/2024) | — |
Incentive design and vesting:
- For 2024 performance, in March 2025 the Committee granted restricted stock to NEOs (ex-CEO) that vests one-third at grant, one-third on each of the first and second anniversaries (subject to continued employment) .
- Options: Committee prefers restricted stock; to date, no stock options have been granted under this approach .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
Ownership, vesting, and recent activity:
- Stock ownership guidelines adopted March 6, 2025: NEOs must hold ABR stock equal to 5x base salary by December 31, 2027; includes vested and unvested equity; compliance measured annually .
- Prohibitions: ABR bans pledging, hedging, and derivatives for covered employees (includes NEOs) .
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Common shares beneficially owned | 324,641 |
| Special Voting Preferred shares (paired with OP Units) | 23,597 |
| Total voting shares (common + special voting preferred) | 348,238 |
| Ownership % of outstanding | <1% (“*” in table) |
| Unvested restricted shares at 12/31/2024 | 40,490 |
| Scheduled vesting (from YE 2024 grants outstanding) | 27,478 in Mar-2025; 13,012 in Mar-2026 |
| Shares vested in 2024 | 36,954; value realized $474,333 |
Insider transactions (recent):
- 05/22/2025: Open-market purchase of 10,000 shares at $8.475; direct holdings reported 334,641 after purchase .
- 03/14/2025: Stock-based award reported for 40,617 units; associated tax-withholding share surrenders of 13,554 at $12.31 and 7,386 at $12.41 (Form 4) .
Employment Terms
| Term | Disclosure |
|---|---|
| Employment agreement | None for NEOs (other than CEO); at-will employment |
| Severance (termination without cause/good reason) | No cash severance for NEOs (other than CEO) |
| Change-in-control treatment | Full vesting of restricted stock upon Company “change of control” under award agreements |
| Clawback | NYSE-compliant clawback to recoup erroneously awarded incentive comp upon accounting restatement |
| Insider trading/pledging/hedging | Derivatives trading, pledging, and hedging of ABR shares prohibited for covered employees |
Performance & Track Record (context for pay-for-performance)
| Metric | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Company TSR (value of $100) | 110 | 153 | 122 | 158 | 164 |
| Peer TSR (FTSE Nareit Mortgage REITs) (value of $100) | 81 | 94 | 69 | 80 | 80 |
| Net Income ($) | 196,157,197 | 377,806,794 | 353,827,809 | 400,556,657 | 283,918,655 |
| Distributable Earnings ($) | 234,866,670 | 313,728,736 | 405,695,825 | 452,478,707 | 358,019,878 |
Additional Compensation Mechanics and Policies (alignment and risk)
- Stock ownership guidelines for executives (EVP+ and Section 16 officers): NEOs required to own 5x base salary by 12/31/2027; measurement methodology specified; grace periods for promotions and other circumstances .
- Pay design: NEO pay mix emphasizes incentive compensation determined annually; no formulaic targets disclosed for NEOs (ex-CEO), supporting discretion but reducing external transparency of pay-for-performance linkage .
- Equity vehicle: Primarily time-vested restricted stock with multi-year vest; Committee has not historically used options; dividend-paying RS awards align with shareholders .
- Clawback and trading policy: Restatement-based clawback; prohibitions on pledging, derivatives, and hedging to maintain long-term alignment .
Investment Implications
- Alignment: Material ongoing equity exposure (common plus unvested RS) and new 5x-salary ownership guideline strengthen long-term alignment; pledging/hedging prohibited, reducing misalignment risk .
- Retention and selling pressure: No employment/severance agreement could elevate retention risk in stress scenarios; however, multi-year vesting and annual grants create “golden handcuffs.” Upcoming vesting tranches (27,478 in Mar-2025; 13,012 in Mar-2026) are modest relative to float, implying limited technical selling pressure; 2025 Form 4 shows tax-withholding share surrenders on vest, a standard practice .
- Signaling: Open-market purchase of 10,000 shares on 05/22/2025 at $8.475 is a positive insider-confidence signal amid sector volatility .
- Pay-for-performance transparency: Discretionary (non-formulaic) NEO bonuses provide flexibility but reduce external visibility into performance metric rigor versus CEO’s clearly articulated framework; investors may monitor consistency of outcomes versus ABR’s distributable earnings and TSR trajectory .
Citations: Executive Officers (bio, responsibilities, age); Stock ownership guidelines; Elements of compensation (no NEO employment/severance agreements); Annual incentive awards (NEO structure); Stock-based awards and vesting; Options policy; Retirement/benefits; Clawback and pledging/hedging prohibitions; Summary Compensation Table (salary, bonus, stock awards, all other comp) and 2025 actions; 2024 grants detail; Outstanding/vesting detail and 2024 vesting; Change-in-control/termination impacts; Pay vs Performance table; Distributable earnings definition; Beneficial ownership table. Form 4 transactions: 03/2025 award and tax-withholding and 05/22/2025 open-market purchase .