Christopher Berarducci
About Christopher Berarducci
Christopher Berarducci serves as Treasurer and Principal Financial Officer of the Fund, having been appointed effective September 27, 2019 (birth year: 1974). He is Vice President, Fund Administration and Reporting at Franklin Templeton (since 2020), and previously held senior roles at Legg Mason & Co. (Managing Director in 2020; Director 2015–2020; Vice President 2011–2015). Fund proxies state that officers are elected annually to hold office until successors are elected and, importantly, officers of the Fund receive no compensation from the Fund; as such, pay-for-performance metrics (TSR, revenue/EBITDA growth) and equity awards tied to GDO are not disclosed/applicable at the Fund level .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Franklin Templeton | Vice President, Fund Administration & Reporting | Since 2020 | Senior oversight of fund administration/reporting across the complex; supports Treasurer/PFO duties for the Fund . |
| Legg Mason & Co. | Managing Director | 2020 | Senior leadership during integration period; continuity for fund administration . |
| Legg Mason & Co. | Director | 2015–2020 | Oversight of fund administration functions at a major fund complex . |
| Legg Mason & Co. | Vice President | 2011–2015 | Operational leadership in fund reporting and administration . |
External Roles
| Organization/Complex | Position | Years | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Certain funds associated with Legg Mason & Co. or affiliates | Treasurer | Since 2010 | Serves as Treasurer for multiple funds in the complex (not just GDO) . |
| Certain funds associated with Legg Mason & Co. or affiliates | Principal Financial Officer | Since 2019 | PFO responsibilities extend across multiple funds; provides financial reporting oversight . |
Fixed Compensation
Officers of the Fund receive no compensation from the Fund (reimbursable travel expenses only) .
| Year | Base Salary (from GDO) | Target/Actual Bonus (from GDO) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2022 | Not paid by Fund | Not paid by Fund | Officers are elected annually; hold office until successors are elected . |
| FY2023 | Not paid by Fund | Not paid by Fund | Officers receive no compensation from the Fund . |
| FY2024 | Not paid by Fund | Not paid by Fund | Officers receive no compensation from the Fund . |
| FY2025 | Not paid by Fund | Not paid by Fund | Officers receive no compensation from the Fund . |
Implications:
- There is no Fund-level salary, bonus, or director fee disclosure for Berarducci; compensation occurs at the adviser/affiliate level (Franklin Templeton/Legg Mason complex), not disclosed in the Fund’s proxy .
Performance Compensation
| Metric | Weighting | Target | Actual | Payout | Vesting |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Not applicable at Fund level | — | — | — | — | — |
- The Fund does not grant RSUs/PSUs/options or pay incentive compensation to officers; therefore no Fund-level performance metrics, targets, or vesting schedules are disclosed for Berarducci .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
- Individual officer holdings are not itemized; the proxy aggregates officers with directors for ownership. As of the following dates, officers and directors as a group beneficially owned less than 1% of outstanding shares .
| Metric | As of Feb 8, 2021 | As of Feb 8, 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| Officers & Directors as a Group – Beneficial Ownership (% of outstanding) | <1% | <1% |
Additional alignment indicators:
- Pledging/Hedging: No specific pledging or hedging disclosures for officers are provided in the Fund proxies reviewed; section 16(a) compliance is affirmed (no systemic filing issues noted) .
- Ownership guidelines: The Fund proxy focuses on director matters; no officer stock ownership guidelines for GDO officers are disclosed .
Employment Terms
| Term | Detail |
|---|---|
| Role and start | Treasurer and Principal Financial Officer; effective September 27, 2019 . |
| Election/term | Officers are chosen each year at a regular Board meeting; hold office until successors are duly elected and qualified . |
| Compensation by Fund | Officers receive no compensation from the Fund (may be reimbursed for reasonable out-of-pocket travel expenses) . |
| Employment agreements | No individual employment agreement with the Fund is disclosed; officer roles are board-appointed positions under the Fund’s governance . |
| Severance/Change-in-control | No Fund-level severance or change-in-control economics for officers are disclosed in the proxy . |
| Clawback/Policies | No officer-specific clawback terms disclosed at the Fund level; section 16(a) compliance noted . |
Investment Implications
- Compensation alignment: Because the Fund does not pay officers, there are no Fund-level cash or equity incentives tied to GDO performance for Berarducci; his compensation and incentives reside with Franklin Templeton/affiliate programs, which are not disclosed in the Fund proxy. This limits direct pay-for-performance alignment signals at the Fund level .
- Insider selling pressure: Absence of Fund-granted equity and aggregate officer/director ownership below 1% suggest minimal Fund-specific insider selling pressure from officers; individual officer holdings are not itemized in the proxy .
- Retention risk: Officer roles are appointed annually by the Board; Berarducci’s primary employer is Franklin Templeton, with a long tenure across Franklin/Legg Mason. Retention risk is more tied to adviser complex employment dynamics than to Fund-level economics .
- Governance/continuity: The role centers on fund administration and financial reporting. Stability of this function across the Franklin/Legg Mason complex provides operational continuity; no adverse officer-related governance events were highlighted in reviewed proxies (section 16 compliance affirmed) .
Overall: For trading/alpha, traditional executive-compensation catalysts (large equity grants, vesting cliffs, option exercises) do not apply at the Fund level. Monitoring adviser-level developments at Franklin Templeton and board-level policies remains more relevant than officer pay for signaling near-term trading dynamics in GDO .