Laurie S. Goodman
ARCH CAPITAL GROUPAbout Laurie S. Goodman
Laurie S. Goodman, age 69, is an Institute Fellow at the Urban Institute and founder of its Housing Finance Policy Center; she has served on Arch Capital Group Ltd.’s board since May 2018 and is a Class II director with a term expiring in 2027. Her credentials include a B.A. in Mathematics (University of Pennsylvania) and an A.M./Ph.D. in Economics (Stanford), with 30+ years’ experience in fixed income research, housing finance, and analytics; she brings audit-committee financial expertise and deep mortgage/housing policy domain knowledge to the board.
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amherst Securities Group, LP | Senior Managing Director | 2008–2013 | Led housing policy analytics, securitized products strategy |
| UBS & predecessor firms | Head of Global Fixed Income Research; Manager of U.S. Securitized Products Research | 1993–2008 | Top-ranked research; oversight of securitized products |
| Federal Reserve Bank of New York | Senior Economist | Early career | Macro/credit analysis foundation |
| Eastbridge Capital | Mortgage Portfolio Manager | Prior to UBS period | Portfolio management in mortgages |
| Various Wall Street firms | Senior Fixed Income Analyst | Pre-1993 | Fixed income analytics experience |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Urban Institute | Institute Fellow; Founder, Housing Finance Policy Center | Current | Non-executive role; policy research |
| MFA Financial, Inc. (REIT) | Director | Current | Board service at mortgage REIT |
| The Amherst Group, LLC | Adviser | Current | Industry advisory role |
| Home Point Capital Inc. | Director | Prior | Audit committee member; chaired nominating/governance |
| Industry bodies (FRBNY Financial Advisory Roundtable; BPC Housing Commission; Fannie Mae Affordable Housing Advisory Council; CFPB Consumer Advocacy Board) | Member/Advisor | Prior/current as noted | Housing policy and advisory roles |
Board Governance
- Committee assignments: Chair, Underwriting Oversight Committee; Member, Audit Committee; Member, Nominating & Governance Committee.
- Audit Committee Financial Expert: The Board determined Goodman qualifies as an “audit committee financial expert” under SEC rules.
- Independence: Arch’s Board concluded Goodman is independent under Nasdaq rules; review included a $125,000 contribution Arch made to the Urban Institute (where she is a fellow), which was below the greater of $200,000 or 1% of the organization’s revenues.
- Attendance and engagement: The Board met six times in 2024; each director attended at least 75% of Board and committee meetings and all then-current directors attended the 2024 annual meeting. Committee activity included Audit (5 meetings), Nominating & Governance (6), Underwriting Oversight (4).
- Board leadership/independence structure: Independent Chair (no separate Lead Independent Director deemed necessary given Chair’s independence).
Fixed Compensation
| Component | Amount (USD) | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Annual cash retainer | $125,000 | Standard non-employee director retainer |
| Underwriting Oversight Committee Chair fee | $50,000 | Chair fee per schedule |
| Audit Committee member fee | $25,000 | Member fee per schedule |
| Fees Earned or Paid in Cash (reported) | $200,015 | 2024 total cash for Goodman |
| All Other Compensation | $25,000 | Company matching gifts to qualified charities (program cap $25k) |
Fee schedule for directors: Audit Chair $50k; Audit Member $25k; Chair of the Board $125k; Compensation Chair $25k; Executive Chair $10k; Finance Chair $25k; Nominating Chair $25k; Underwriting Oversight Chair $50k.
Performance Compensation
| Equity Award | Grant Date | Shares Granted | Grant-Date Fair Value (USD) | Vesting |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Restricted Shares (annual director grant) | May 9, 2024 | 1,455 | $144,962 | 100% on May 9, 2025 |
- Non-employee directors receive time-vested restricted shares annually; directors do not receive Arch performance shares or options.
- Ownership/holding policy: Until guidelines are met, directors must retain 50% of net shares from equity awards.
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Company | Sector | Role | Potential Interlock/Conflict Assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| MFA Financial, Inc. | Mortgage REIT | Director | No Arch-related transactions disclosed; informational network in mortgage finance may benefit Arch’s mortgage unit oversight. |
| Urban Institute | Non-profit research | Institute Fellow | Arch contributed $125,000 in Oct 2024; reviewed for independence; below threshold; Board deemed independence intact. |
| The Amherst Group, LLC | Financial services/advisory | Adviser | No Arch-related party transactions disclosed involving Amherst; advisor role disclosed. |
| Home Point Capital Inc. | Mortgage originator/servicer | Former Director | Prior service noted; no current interlock with Arch counterparties disclosed. |
Expertise & Qualifications
- Housing finance and securitization expert; extensive analytics and strategy background; contributes materially to risk oversight in mortgage and credit.
- Audit literacy and financial expertise recognized formally by the Audit Committee (SEC “financial expert”).
- Experience across Street research leadership and policy institutions aligns with Arch’s diversified platform and underwriting/investment discipline.
Equity Ownership
| Metric | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Beneficial ownership (common shares) | 33,938 | Less than 1% of outstanding common shares |
| Unvested restricted shares outstanding (12/31/2024) | 1,455 | Annual director grant unvested at year-end |
| Pledged/Hedged shares | None disclosed | Hedging prohibited by policy; pledging not disclosed for Goodman |
| Director ownership guideline | ≥5x annual cash retainer within 5 years | Goodman is compliant or expected to be within prescribed timeframe |
Governance Assessment
- Strengths
- Independent director with SEC-defined audit financial expertise; chairs a key risk committee (Underwriting Oversight), signaling strong board confidence in her technical oversight.
- Consistent engagement (Board six meetings; committees active) and attendance at/above required thresholds, supporting effective governance.
- Alignment mechanisms: annual equity with holding requirements; robust anti-hedging policy; director ownership guidelines (≥5x retainer).
- Potential conflicts/RED FLAGS
- Related party exposure: $125,000 Arch contribution to Urban Institute (where Goodman is a fellow) flagged and reviewed; size below independence thresholds and explicitly considered in independence determination; independence affirmed.
- No hedging/pledging issues disclosed for Goodman; no related-party transactions beyond the Urban Institute contribution.
Say-on-Pay & Shareholder Feedback
- Arch’s say-on-pay approval was 95.3% at the 2024 annual meeting, with consistent >90% support since 2020; Board and Compensation & Human Capital Committee cite ongoing investor engagement across governance and pay topics.
Notes on Insider Trades
- Attempted retrieval of Form 4 transactions for Laurie S. Goodman using the insider-trades skill encountered an authorization error; ownership analysis relies on the latest DEF 14A beneficial ownership table. We will update with Form 4 activity upon successful data access. (Tool error noted)
Board Governance (Committee Summaries)
- Underwriting Oversight Committee (Chair: Goodman): Reviews insurance, reinsurance, and mortgage underwriting activities; met four times in 2024.
- Audit Committee (Member: Goodman): Oversees financial reporting integrity, auditor independence, operational/IT risk; met five times in 2024; Goodman designated audit financial expert; Committee recommended 2024 financials publication.
- Nominating & Governance Committee (Member: Goodman): Board composition, CEO succession, corporate governance and sustainability oversight; met six times in 2024.
Overall board structure features an independent Chair (Pasquesi) and majority-independent committees; independent directors meet in executive session without management.