Alexander Merk
About Alexander Merk
Alexander (Axel) Merk (56) serves as ASA’s Chief Operating Officer and Principal Executive Officer (since March 2019). He is the founder, President, and Chief Investment Officer of Merk Investments LLC, ASA’s external investment adviser; he holds a BA in economics and an MS in computer science from Brown University . Under Merk’s stewardship, ASA reported strong recent performance: for the six months ended May 31, 2025, NAV total return was +50.6% (share price +55.4%), with the market discount narrowing from 12.7% to 9.9%; 1/3/5/10-year average annual total returns were 66.10%/19.14%/13.39%/11.78% (NAV) and 72.45%/20.26%/15.81%/11.74% (price) . ASA’s net assets rose to $663 million at May 31, 2025 from $444 million at FY24-end .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| ASA Gold and Precious Metals Limited | Chief Operating Officer and Principal Executive Officer | March 2019 – Present | Executive leadership during adviser tenure; signatory and SOX certifications on shareholder reports . |
| Merk Investments LLC | Founder, President, Chief Investment Officer | 2001 – Present | Leads ASA’s external adviser; responsible for investment philosophy, personnel, and fair valuation oversight . |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Merk Stagflation ETF (Cayman) | Director (other directorships during past five years) | 2022 – 2024 | Broader investment and governance experience referenced in ASA proxy . |
Fixed Compensation
ASA discloses director compensation but does not provide officer cash compensation details; key officers (e.g., CFO/Secretary/CCO) are provided by service providers (Apex and Foreside/ACA), and Merk is employed by Merk Investments, ASA’s external adviser .
Director compensation context (FY2024), for governance benchmarking:
| Role | Cash/Retainer Detail (FY2024) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Independent Directors | $25,000 annual retainer; $5,000 per in-person meeting; $1,500 per telephonic meeting; Committee Chair: $7,500 (Nominating, Audit & Ethics) | FY2024 schedule; increased retainers effective 9/19/2025 ($65,000 retainer; $1,500 per special meeting; revised committee chair retainers) . |
Performance Compensation
Economic incentives flow primarily through the advisory fee structure rather than company-paid equity awards.
| Component | Terms | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Investment Advisory Fee (Merk Investments) | 0.70% of ASA average daily net assets, paid monthly | Advisory Agreement continued by Independent Directors in March 2025 after multi-factor evaluation (services, performance, fees vs peers, scale, profitability) . |
| Voluntary Fee Waivers | Additional 0.05% on $100–300mm AUM (Apr 1, 2024–Mar 31, 2025), plus ongoing tiered waivers (0.05% >$300mm; +0.10% >$500mm); $130,286 waived in 6 months ended May 31, 2025 | Waivers intended, in part, to offset extraordinary proxy-related expenses and reflect alignment during scale/expense pressures . |
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Metric | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Beneficial Ownership (common shares) | 317,660 shares | As of record date; sole voting and investment power . |
| Ownership (% of outstanding) | 1.68% | Based on 18,911,123 shares outstanding (April 3, 2025) . |
| Aggregate Dollar Range | Over $100,000 | Proxy disclosure . |
Insider open-market activity (recent disclosed purchases):
| Date | Shares | Type |
|---|---|---|
| 12/05/2023 – 01/16/2025 (selected transactions) | Multiple purchases, e.g., 24,400 (12/14/23); 25,549 (01/02/24); 23,068 (12/27/24); 30,825 (01/03/25); 31,248 (01/16/25) | Purchases of ASA common shares; see full list in DEFC14A Annex I . |
Ownership and alignment context:
- Merk disclosed 317,660 shares jointly with spouse (1.68%), and personally solicited proxies as a shareholder in 2025; he also noted potential conflicts given adviser fee economics (approx. $2.67mm advisory fees in 2024 after voluntary waivers) .
Employment Terms
| Item | Disclosure |
|---|---|
| Role and Tenure | Principal Executive Officer and COO since March 2019 . |
| Officer Service Status | “Executive officers serve until they are terminated or resign” (standard for ASA officers) . |
| Service Provider Model | ASA’s CFO/Secretary and CCO roles are provided by Apex and Foreside/ACA; effective Oct 1, 2025, new PFO and Secretary appointed (Foreside/ACA) . |
Performance & Track Record
| Metric | Period | ASA NAV TR | ASA Price TR | Benchmark/Peer Context |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Period performance | 6 months ended May 31, 2025 | +50.6% | +55.4% | GDMNTR +36.2%; discount improved to 9.9% from 12.7% . |
| Average Annual Total Returns | 1 Year | 66.10% | 72.45% | Outperformed GDMNTR (44.77%) . |
| Average Annual Total Returns | 3 Year | 19.14% | 20.26% | Relative strength vs index . |
| Average Annual Total Returns | 5 Year | 13.39% | 15.81% | Board noted above-average performance vs peers/indices in 1- and 5-year periods through 12/31/2024 . |
| Net Assets | May 31, 2025 | $663m | N/A | Up from $444m at FY24-end . |
Additional context:
- Board’s 2025 advisory contract renewal cited the adviser’s capability, incentives to support ASA, oversight of fair valuation, discount monitoring, and investor communications; also noted limited economies of scale for a closed-end PFIC and absence of soft dollars/indirect benefits .
Related Party Economics and Governance
| Topic | Detail |
|---|---|
| Advisory Agreement | Merk Investments receives 0.70% of average daily net assets; continued by Independent Directors in March 2025 after a comprehensive review . |
| Extraordinary Expenses | ASA incurred $3,990,470 in extraordinary expenses in the six months ended May 31, 2025 (linked to shareholder/proxy matters); adviser waived $130,286 during the period . |
| Soft Dollars/Indirect Benefits | Independent Directors noted no soft dollars or indirect benefits to Merk beyond the advisory fee . |
| 2025 Shareholder Solicitation | Merk personally filed a DEFC14A opposing a Saba-driven board expansion; disclosed potential conflict given adviser fee concentration with ASA . |
Investment Implications
- Alignment and insider signal: Merk owns 1.68% of ASA and executed repeated open-market purchases across late 2023–early 2025, a positive signal for alignment and potentially reduced near-term selling pressure .
- Incentive structure: With compensation tied to adviser economics (0.70% AUM fee with voluntary waivers), incentives lean toward asset growth, discount management, and sustained performance; 2025 waivers indicate willingness to share economics during stress from proxy-related costs .
- Execution track record: Recent returns and asset growth, discount improvement, and Board’s positive evaluation of the adviser’s capabilities support credibility in execution; outperformance vs the gold miners index and peers over key horizons underpins confidence .
- Governance and risk: The 2025 proxy contest underscores governance scrutiny and potential friction; extraordinary expenses and activist pressure are ongoing risks, particularly around fee structure, buybacks, or board composition .