Lawrence Fensterstock
About Lawrence Fensterstock
Lawrence Fensterstock is an experienced finance and operations executive and CPA nominated as an independent director of CreditRiskMonitor.com, Inc. at the September 18, 2025 annual meeting. He spent 21 years with CRMZ (1999–2020), serving as Chief Financial Officer through March 2020 and Senior Vice President through June 2020; he is designated to serve as an Audit Committee financial expert and member of the Compensation Committee if elected. Fensterstock holds a BA in Economics from Queens College and an MBA from The University of Chicago Booth School of Business; he began his career at Arthur Andersen LLP and has extensive leadership experience in finance, accounting, internal audit, and leveraged buyouts .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| CreditRiskMonitor.com, Inc. | Chief Financial Officer; Senior Vice President | CFO: Jan 1999–Mar 2020; SVP: Jan 1999–Jun 2020 | Implemented financial and operational frameworks; led integration of Market Guide Inc. credit information assets |
| Market Guide Inc. | Formation lead, credit information services division | Sep 1996 onward (prior to CRMZ acquisition in Jan 1999) | Built credit information services capability that became CRMZ’s core asset |
| Information Clearinghouse Incorporated (ICI) | Chief Operating & Financial Officer | 1993–1996 | Formed and published credit reporting service; operational and financial leadership |
| Private entity acquiring Litton office products operations | Vice President–Controller, Treasurer, Corporate Secretary; de facto CFO | 1989–1992 | Managed finance during leveraged buyout; de facto CFO responsibilities |
| Security Capital Corporation | Vice President | 1984–1989 | Managed internal audit and quality control across multi-entity financial services holding company |
| Arthur Andersen LLP | Auditor (CPA) | Began 1973; >10 years | Served public and private clients in financial services and real estate |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Market Guide Inc. | Formation lead, credit information services division | 1996–1999 | Built platform later acquired by CRMZ |
| Information Clearinghouse Incorporated | COO & CFO | 1993–1996 | Led creation/publication of credit reporting service |
| Security Capital Corporation | Vice President | 1984–1989 | Ran internal audit/QA across S&L, mortgage banking, insurance, and real estate ops |
| Arthur Andersen LLP | Auditor (CPA) | ~1973–mid-1980s | Financial services and real estate audit experience |
Board Governance
- Nomination and independence: Fensterstock is nominated as an independent director in 2025; he is designated to serve on Audit and Compensation Committees and is identified as an “audit committee financial expert” .
- Committee assignments: Audit Committee (financial expert) and Compensation Committee; Board has no standing Nominating Committee (entire Board handles nominations due to small size) .
- Board leadership and independence: CRMZ does not have a Lead Independent Director; Executive Chairman role is held by former CEO Jerome S. Flum .
- Meetings and attendance baseline: Board held 5 meetings in 2024; Audit Committee held 4. All directors in 2024 attended at least 75% of meetings of the Board and their committees (Fensterstock was not on the Board in 2024) .
Fixed Compensation
Director cash fee policy and structure:
| Component | Amount | Effective Date/Note |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly cash retainer for non-employee directors | $2,000 per quarter ($8,000 per year) | Effective July 12, 2023 |
| Audit Committee financial expert supplemental cash fee | $3,000 per quarter | Effective Oct 1, 2024; applied to Dr. Muehlmann |
Recent director cash comp (illustrative of policy; Fensterstock’s individual comp not yet disclosed):
| Name | 2023 Fees ($) | 2024 Fees ($) |
|---|---|---|
| Brigitte Muehlmann | $8,000 | $5,000 |
| Lisa Reisman | $8,000 | $4,000 |
| Joshua M. Flum | $8,000 | $4,000 |
| Andrew J. Melnick (former) | $4,000 | — |
| Richard Lippe (former) | $4,000 | — |
Performance Compensation
- Director equity awards are disclosed as option award fair values (no RSUs/PSUs for directors disclosed). No performance metrics tied to director compensation are disclosed (e.g., TSR or financial KPIs for directors) . | Name | 2023 Option Awards ($) | 2024 Option Awards ($) | |---|---:|---:| | Brigitte Muehlmann | $367 | $840 | | Lisa Reisman | $367 | $840 | | Joshua M. Flum | $7,259 | $9,902 | | Andrew J. Melnick (former) | $0 | — | | Richard Lippe (former) | $0 | — |
No director equity grant dates, share counts, or vesting schedules are provided for directors in the proxy tables; those details are provided for executive officers only .
Other Directorships & Interlocks
- No current public company directorships or board interlocks for Fensterstock are disclosed in the 2025 proxy biography .
- Family relationship on CRMZ Board: Joshua M. Flum is the son of Executive Chairman Jerome S. Flum; this is relevant to overall Board independence dynamics, though unrelated to Fensterstock directly .
Expertise & Qualifications
- CPA; extensive finance, accounting, internal audit, and operating leadership across financial services and real estate sectors .
- Deep company-specific expertise from 21 years in senior roles at CRMZ, including CFO; executed acquisition/integration of Market Guide’s credit information assets .
- Education: BA Economics (Queens College); MBA (University of Chicago Booth School of Business) .
- Designation: Audit Committee financial expert .
Equity Ownership
- Fensterstock is not included in the January 31, 2025 beneficial ownership table (he was a nominee at the time), so total shares, options, and percentage of class for him are not disclosed .
- Company hedging/pledging: CRMZ does not maintain a policy prohibiting hedging or monetization transactions by directors, officers, or employees—a governance risk to alignment .
Governance Assessment
- Strengths: Independent nominee with deep finance/accounting credentials and audit committee financial expert designation; slated to serve on Audit and Compensation Committees, enhancing technical oversight .
- Alignment and pay mix: CRMZ’s director pay is primarily fixed cash with relatively modest option awards for most directors; audit committee financial expert receives a larger quarterly cash supplement. Absence of disclosed stock ownership guidelines for directors reduces formal alignment signals .
- Board independence considerations: No Lead Independent Director; father–son duo on Board; entire Board serves as Nominating Committee due to small size—acceptable for micro-cap but less robust governance structure for larger issuers .
- Risk indicators and red flags:
- No hedging/monetization prohibition in insider trading policy (potential misalignment) .
- Concentrated control via Flum Partners (>50% ownership) may influence Board dynamics and minority shareholder confidence, though independence of Fensterstock is explicitly stated .
- Attendance/engagement baseline: In 2024, all then-directors met the 75% attendance threshold; meeting cadence is modest (5 Board; 4 Audit), with no disclosure of executive session frequency. No attendance data yet for Fensterstock’s tenure given 2025 nomination timing .
Notes and Additional Disclosures
- Election timing and 8-K: Dr. Brigitte Muehlmann did not stand for re-election (Item 5.02 on April 25, 2025), creating the opening for Fensterstock’s nomination; no disagreements reported .
- Say-on-Pay frequency: Company proposes and historically received support for triennial say-on-pay frequency (2019 vote); 2025 proxy includes advisory say-on-pay and frequency votes .
- Compensation Committee authority: Committee may engage outside advisors; no disclosure of use of an independent compensation consultant or consultant conflicts .