Christopher Berarducci
About Christopher Berarducci
Christopher Berarducci (born 1974) serves as Treasurer and Principal Financial Officer of Western Asset Emerging Markets Debt Fund Inc. (NYSE: EMD), a closed‑end fund; he has held the Treasurer role across the complex since 2010 and PFO since 2019, and is Vice President, Fund Administration and Reporting at Franklin Templeton (since 2020) . Officers of the Fund receive no compensation from the Fund (administrative officers are appointed annually by the Board), and therefore individual salary/bonus/equity details are not disclosed at the Fund level . In his capacity as PFO, Berarducci signs SOX 302/906 certifications for the Fund’s N‑CSR, evidencing responsibility for disclosure controls and internal control over financial reporting . The Fund reports that required Section 16 ownership filings were timely for the fiscal years referenced in the most recent proxies .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Franklin Templeton | Vice President, Fund Administration and Reporting | 2020–present | Senior fund administration/reporting leader supporting registered funds (including EMD) . |
| Legg Mason & Co. | Managing Director | 2020 | Senior management role prior to integration into Franklin Templeton . |
| Legg Mason & Co. | Director | 2015–2020 | Leadership within fund administration functions . |
| Legg Mason & Co. | Vice President | 2011–2015 | Fund administration responsibilities . |
| Fund complex (various funds) | Treasurer | 2010–present | Treasurer of certain funds in the complex (including EMD) . |
| Fund complex (various funds) | Principal Financial Officer | 2019–present | PFO of certain funds in the complex (including EMD) . |
External Roles
No public company directorships or external board roles are disclosed for Berarducci in EMD’s proxy filings .
Fixed Compensation
- Officers of the Fund receive no compensation from the Fund; director compensation is disclosed, but officer pay is not (officers may be reimbursed for reasonable out‑of‑pocket travel expenses to attend Board meetings) .
- Any salary/bonus/equity paid by Franklin Templeton or affiliates is not reported in the Fund’s proxies; therefore base salary, target bonus, and perquisites for Berarducci are not disclosed at the Fund level .
Performance Compensation
- The Fund does not grant cash or equity incentives to its officers; there are no Fund‑level RSUs/PSUs, options, vesting schedules, or performance metric disclosures for officers such as revenue growth, EBITDA, or TSR in the Fund’s proxy materials .
- Compensation committees referenced in the proxy govern director compensation (and committee fees) across the fund complex; officer incentive plans, if any, would be at the adviser and are not disclosed by the Fund .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
- Individual officer holdings are not broken out; the Fund reports officers and directors as a group owned less than 1% of outstanding shares in recent years .
- Section 16(a) ownership reporting compliance was met based on the Fund’s review for FY2023 and FY2024 .
| Metric | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Officers and Directors as a group beneficial ownership (% of shares outstanding) | <1% | <1% | <1% | <1% |
Additional alignment notes:
- No pledging/hedging by officers is disclosed; the proxies do not provide officer‑specific share pledging information .
- Officer‑level stock ownership guidelines or compliance status are not provided in the Fund’s proxy .
Employment Terms
- Executive officers are chosen each year at a regular meeting of the Board and hold office until successors are duly elected and qualified .
- Officers receive no compensation from the Fund; employment arrangements, if any, are with Franklin Templeton or affiliates and are not included in the Fund’s proxy (no severance or change‑of‑control terms are disclosed at the Fund level) .
- No individual employment contract, non‑compete, non‑solicit, garden leave, or post‑termination consulting arrangements are described for Berarducci in the Fund’s filings .
- SOX 302/906 certifications signed by the CEO and PFO (Berarducci) indicate oversight of disclosure controls and internal control over financial reporting for the Fund’s N‑CSR .
Investment Implications
- Pay‑for‑performance levers at the Fund level are minimal for officers: EMD does not pay or award equity to officers, so there is no Fund‑level bonus or vesting framework to drive short‑term incentives or create insider selling pressure tied to vesting events .
- Ownership alignment is modest: officers and directors as a group hold <1% of shares, suggesting limited “skin in the game” among insiders at the Fund; trading signal value from officer‑level ownership appears low given the aggregated <1% figure and lack of individual officer holdings disclosure .
- Retention risk and compensation dynamics reside at Franklin Templeton (not the Fund); any severance/CIC or equity incentives affecting Berarducci are outside the Fund’s disclosures, reducing visibility into adviser‑level incentive alignment .
- Governance/compliance signal: recurring SOX certifications and reported Section 16 compliance point to steady administrative controls, but these are neutral to Fund performance alpha; portfolio outcomes are primarily driven by Western Asset’s investment team rather than Fund officers such as the Treasurer/PFO .