Nicholas Daniel
ETSYAbout Nicholas Daniel
Nicholas Daniel is Etsy’s Chief Product Officer (CPO) and member of the Executive Team, leading global marketplace product development since his promotion in July 2022; he is age 43 in the 2025 proxy and has progressed through Etsy’s product ranks since 2014 (Senior Product Manager → Group PM → Director → Senior Director → VP → CPO) . Company performance context during the period highlights Etsy’s scale and shareholder returns: the Board noted that 2016–2024 revenue grew nearly eightfold and share price appreciated by more than seven times from 2017 to Oct 28, 2025 , with 2024 top line disappointing but “very healthy” financial performance as the Board authorized a new $1B repurchase program .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Etsy | Chief Product Officer | 2022–present | Leads marketplace product development worldwide, building shopping experiences across platforms and enabling entrepreneurs to scale |
| Etsy | Vice President, Product | 2018–2022 | Led product teams through major phases of marketplace growth |
| Etsy | Senior Director, Product | 2016–2018 | Drove cross-functional product initiatives |
| Etsy | Director, Product | 2015–2016 | Leadership of product management areas |
| Etsy | Group Product Manager | 2014–2015 | Managed core product groups |
| Etsy | Senior Product Manager | 2014 | Contributed to marketplace product roadmap |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| — | None disclosed | — | No public company board or external roles disclosed in proxies |
Fixed Compensation
- Specific compensation values for Nicholas Daniel are not disclosed (he is not listed as a Named Executive Officer in the Summary Compensation Table); Etsy’s program sets target annual cash incentive opportunities by role and peer benchmarking, with examples disclosed for NEOs only .
- Executives receive base salary plus an annual Management Cash Incentive Plan (MCIP) opportunity; CEO weighting was 80% corporate/20% individual and other NEOs were 70%/30% in 2024, with maximum payout 200% of target .
Performance Compensation
Annual Cash Incentive (MCIP) – Corporate Metrics and 2024 Outcomes
| Metric | Weight | 2023 Actual | 2024 Threshold | 2024 Target | 2024 Stretch | 2024 Actual | Weighted Payout % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GMS ($B) | 40% | $13.161 | $12.425 | $13.361 | $14.697 | $12.587 | 23.5% |
| Revenue ($B) | 30% | $2.748 | $2.697 | $2.900 | $3.190 | $2.808 | 23.2% |
| Adjusted EBITDA Margin (%) | 30% | 27.4% | 26.3% | 27.8% | 29.1% | 27.8% | 30.7% |
| Total Corporate Component | — | — | — | — | — | — | 77% |
- 2025 MCIP change: revenue replaced with take-rate (consolidated revenue ÷ consolidated GMS); GMS and Adjusted EBITDA margin retained; individual goals remain part of the plan .
Long-Term Equity Incentives (RSUs and PSUs) – Design and Vesting
| Award Type | Performance Metrics | Performance Period | Vesting | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RSUs | Service | — | Typically 16 equal quarterly installments; 2024 RSUs began vesting July 1, 2024 | Annual equity grants on pre-set dates; units sized using 30-trading-day average price methodology |
| PSUs (Financial) | GMS, Revenue, Adjusted EBITDA/Margin | 2024 awards: 2-year (Jan 1, 2024–Dec 31, 2025) → moving to 3-year starting 2025 | 50% on Apr 1, 2026 and 50% on Apr 1, 2027, subject to service | Earn-out ranges 0–200% of target; goals disclosed post-period |
| PSUs (Relative TSR) | TSR vs Nasdaq Composite constituents | 3-year (e.g., Jan 1, 2024–Dec 31, 2026) | 100% on Apr 1, 2027, subject to service | Monte Carlo valuation; 0–200% earn-out |
- Etsy has not granted options to NEOs since 2021; equity awards follow pre-established grant dates and sizing methodology .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
- Ownership guidelines: Executive officers must hold the lesser of 1x base salary or 4,400 shares; CEO guideline is the lesser of 6x base salary or 37,800 shares; directors: lesser of $150,000 or 1,500 shares. Five-year compliance window from adoption or from becoming an executive .
- Anti-hedging and anti-pledging: Executives are prohibited from short sales, hedging, derivatives trading, and pledging/using Etsy stock as collateral under the Insider Trading Policy .
- Clawback policy: Recoupment of incentive compensation for current/former executive officers in event of a financial restatement, consistent with SEC/Nasdaq standards .
Employment Terms
- At-will employment for Executive Team; no individual employment agreement is disclosed for Nicholas Daniel in proxies .
- Executive Severance Plan (applies to executive officers):
- Qualifying Termination (without cause/for good reason, outside change in control): 12 months salary continuation, pro-rata bonus if termination after third month of fiscal year, and healthcare continuation .
- Qualifying Change in Control Termination (double trigger, within 3 months before or 12 months after CoC): CEO receives 18 months salary; other executive officers 12 months; pro-rata bonus, healthcare continuation; full vesting of outstanding RSUs and options; earned PSUs vest per terms .
Compensation Peer Group (Benchmarking)
- 2024 peer group used for executive compensation decisions included: ANGI Homeservices, DocuSign, DoorDash, Dropbox, eBay, GoDaddy, HubSpot, IAC, Match Group, Okta, Peloton, Pinterest, RingCentral, Roblox, Snap, Tripadvisor, Twilio, Wayfair, Yelp, Zillow; updates approved for 2025 removed DoorDash and Roblox .
- Compensia serves as the independent compensation consultant; no conflicts disclosed .
Say-on-Pay & Shareholder Feedback
- 2024 say-on-pay support was ~59%; Etsy conducted targeted engagement and implemented changes: 2025 MCIP metric shift to take-rate and extended PSU financial metrics to three-year periods; Board also proposed eliminating supermajority voting provisions .
Compensation Structure Analysis
- Increased emphasis on multi-year pay-for-performance via PSUs; all PSU metrics at three-year horizon starting 2025, improving long-term alignment .
- Anti-hedging/pledging and clawback provisions strengthen alignment and risk controls; no change-in-control excise tax gross-ups; no option repricing without stockholder approval .
- Equity grant policy uses average pricing to mitigate short-term volatility in award sizing; annual grants on pre-set dates support discipline and reduce timing risk .
Investment Implications
- Alignment: As a long-tenured internal product leader, Daniel’s incentives are likely heavily equity-based with PSUs tied to GMS, profitability, and relative TSR, aligning pay with value creation; ownership guidelines and anti-pledging reduce misalignment risk .
- Retention/pressure: Broad executive coverage under the severance plan with double-trigger CoC and continued vesting provisions supports retention through transitions; absence of disclosed individual grants or Form 4 activity for Daniel limits visibility into near-term selling pressure from vesting .
- Performance drivers: 2025 move to take-rate in MCIP intensifies focus on monetization efficiency alongside GMS and margin—positive for product-led execution under Daniel; watch subsequent proxy for disclosure of outcomes and any changes to his incentive mix .
- Governance signal: Post-2024 engagement and structural tweaks to compensation suggest responsiveness to investors; continued monitoring of say-on-pay results and PSU outcomes advisable for assessing management confidence and execution risk .