Mark Haley
About Mark Haley
Mark T. Haley, CFA (born 1964), is President of Liberty All‑Star Funds (including Liberty All‑Star Growth Fund, Inc., “ASG”) since April 2023; he previously served as Senior Vice President of the Funds (1999–Apr 2023) and holds senior roles at ALPS Advisors, Inc. (AAI) with prior experience at Banc of America Investment Advisors . He is deemed an affiliate of the Funds under the 1940 Act, and is based out of AAI’s Boston office (One Financial Center, 4th Floor, Boston, MA 02111) . The 2025 and 2024 proxies do not disclose executive officer performance metrics or pay outcomes (e.g., TSR, revenue, EBITDA) for fund officers; only independent trustee/director pay is presented .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Liberty All‑Star Funds | President | 2023–present | Leads the Funds; signatory on portfolio management agreements and meeting materials . |
| Liberty All‑Star Funds | Senior Vice President | 1999–Apr 2023 | Senior operating leadership across multi‑manager closed‑end funds . |
| ALPS Advisors, Inc. (AAI) | Senior Vice President (since 2022); Vice President (2006–2021) | 2006–present | Senior leadership at the Funds’ manager; oversight of sub‑advisers and multi‑manager process . |
| Banc of America Investment Advisors | Vice President | 1999–2006 | Institutional asset‑management experience . |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| — | — | — | No external boards/committee roles for Haley are disclosed in the 2025/2024 proxies . |
Fixed Compensation
- Officer compensation is not reported in the ASG proxies; the Compensation section covers only Independent Trustees/Directors. The Nominating and Governance Committee reviews independent trustee/director compensation, with detailed amounts disclosed for trustees, not fund officers .
- No data disclosed on Haley’s base salary, target/actual bonuses, perquisites, pension/SERP, deferred comp, or gross‑ups in the 2025/2024 proxies .
Performance Compensation
- The proxies include no disclosure of performance‑based compensation for fund officers (e.g., RSUs/PSUs, option grants, performance metrics, weighting, payout curves, or actual payout results) .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Holder | Shares Owned – Equity Fund (ASG’s sister fund) | Shares Owned – Growth Fund (ASG) | Notes/Implications |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mark T. Haley (12/31/2023) | 127,029 | 114,059 | Personally holds Fund shares; suggests alignment with shareholders . |
| Mark T. Haley (12/31/2024) | 140,507 | 127,148 | Increased ownership YoY; all officers and trustees as a group each held <1% of outstanding shares of each Fund . |
- Pledging/Hedging: No pledging or hedging by Haley is disclosed in the proxies .
- Ownership guidelines: No officer stock ownership guidelines or compliance status are disclosed in the proxies .
Employment Terms
- Role/tenure: President since 2023; officers are elected by the Boards annually and serve at the pleasure of the Board until a successor is elected or upon removal, resignation, or death .
- Affiliate status: Haley is “deemed an affiliate” of the Funds under the 1940 Act .
- Location: Address for Haley (and Milas) is c/o ALPS Advisors, Inc., One Financial Center, 4th Floor, Boston, MA 02111 .
- Contracts/Severance/Change‑of‑Control: No employment agreement, severance multiple, or change‑of‑control terms are disclosed for Haley in the proxies .
- Clawback/Non‑compete/Non‑solicit/Garden leave: Not disclosed for officers in the proxies .
- Section 16 compliance: The Funds state that all applicable Section 16(a) filing requirements were complied with for the year ended 12/31/2024 (and 12/31/2023 in the 2024 proxy) .
Board Governance (context)
- Haley is an officer (not a Director). Independent Boards oversee AAI (manager) and portfolio managers; Audit Committees are fully independent and chaired by an audit committee financial expert .
- Trustee/Director compensation (context only) is disclosed in detail; this underscores that officer pay is not presented in the fund proxies .
Compensation Structure Analysis
- Mix and trends: No officer cash/equity mix, targets, or realized pay disclosed; no evidence of shifts in options vs RSUs, increased guaranteed pay, or use of discretion for officers in the proxies .
- Peer benchmarking/target percentile: Not disclosed for officers; proxy only addresses independent trustee compensation oversight .
- Red flags: No indication of option repricing, tax gross‑ups, or related‑party transactions involving Haley in the proxies reviewed .
Performance & Track Record
- Execution markers: As President, Haley appears as signatory for key agreements (e.g., 2024 Westfield sub‑advisory agreement), consistent with operational leadership of the Funds’ multi‑manager program .
- TSR/operational performance: The proxies do not present TSR or operating KPIs tied to officer pay or evaluation for Haley .
Risk Indicators & Red Flags
- Legal/investigations: No officer‑specific legal proceedings or SEC investigations related to Haley are disclosed in the proxies .
- Insider selling pressure: No equity award vesting schedules or option expiries are disclosed for officers; Haley’s stake appears personally held (not award‑based), reducing forced‑sale pressures from scheduled vesting .
- Pledging/hedging: Not disclosed for Haley; no pledging data presented in the proxies .
Compensation Committee Analysis
- The Nominating and Governance Committee (independent) reviews independent trustee/director compensation; there is no separate disclosure of an executive compensation committee or officer pay program details in the fund proxies .
Say‑on‑Pay & Shareholder Feedback
- The proxies do not include say‑on‑pay votes or officer pay feedback for fund officers; compensation disclosure is limited to independent trustees/directors .
Expertise & Qualifications
- Credentials: CFA charterholder; extensive investment management and multi‑manager fund leadership experience .
- Industry tenure: Senior roles at AAI and Banc of America Investment Advisors; long‑tenured with Liberty All‑Star Funds since 1999 .
- Education: Not disclosed in reviewed proxies .
Work History & Career Trajectory
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Liberty All‑Star Funds | President | 2023–present | Officer leadership of ASG and sister fund; Board‑elected . |
| Liberty All‑Star Funds | Senior Vice President | 1999–Apr 2023 | Senior leadership across Funds . |
| ALPS Advisors, Inc. | SVP (since 2022); VP (2006–2021) | 2006–present | Senior roles at the Funds’ manager . |
| Banc of America Investment Advisors | Vice President | 1999–2006 | Institutional AM experience . |
Equity Ownership Details (Multi‑Year)
| Metric | 12/31/2023 | 12/31/2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Haley Shares – Equity Fund | 127,029 | 140,507 |
| Haley Shares – Growth Fund (ASG) | 114,059 | 127,148 |
| Group Ownership Concentration | Each officer/trustee, and all as a group, held <1% of outstanding shares of each Fund | Each officer/trustee, and all as a group, held <1% of outstanding shares of each Fund |
Investment Implications
- Alignment: Haley owns meaningful personal stakes in both ASG and the sister Equity Fund, which increased year over year—supportive of shareholder alignment; no pledging disclosed .
- Transparency gap: Lack of officer compensation disclosure (cash and equity) limits pay‑for‑performance analysis and modeling of retention incentives; independent trustee pay is disclosed, but not officer pay .
- Retention risk: Officers serve at the pleasure of the Boards and are affiliated with AAI; retention and economics likely sit primarily with AAI rather than the Funds—without officer contract/severance disclosure, retention terms are opaque .
- Trading signals: With no disclosed officer equity awards or vesting schedules, predictable insider selling pressure from vesting is unlikely; incremental personal share accumulation by Haley is a modestly positive signal but lacks transaction detail in the proxies .
- Governance: Independent Boards, independent Audit Committees with a designated audit financial expert, and stated Section 16 compliance support governance quality around the Funds’ operations .