John C. Ball
President, Treasurer, and Principal Financial and Accounting Officer at GABELLI GLOBAL UTILITY & INCOME TRUST
Executive
About John C. Ball
John C. Ball (born 1976) serves as President, Treasurer, and Principal Financial and Accounting Officer of The Gabelli Global Utility & Income Trust (GLU), in office since 2017; he is also Senior Vice President of GAMCO Investors, Inc. (since 2018) and Chief Executive Officer of G. Distributors, LLC (since 2020), and has served as an officer across registered investment companies within the Gabelli Fund Complex since 2017 . The Fund reported full compliance with Section 16(a) filing requirements for executive officers in 2024, indicating no delinquent ownership reports for Mr. Ball in that year . Education and specific fund performance metrics (TSR, revenue growth, EBITDA) for Mr. Ball are not disclosed in the proxy.
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| GAMCO Investors, Inc. | Senior Vice President | Since 2018 | Senior management role supporting the adviser to GLU and fund complex operations |
| G. Distributors, LLC | Chief Executive Officer | Since 2020 | Leadership of distribution entity supporting investment company activities |
| Gabelli Fund Complex (U.S. registered investment companies) | Officer | Since 2017 | Multi-fund administrative and financial officer responsibilities across the complex |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| GAMCO Investors, Inc. | Senior Vice President | Since 2018 | Parent of GLU’s adviser (Gabelli Funds, LLC) |
| G. Distributors, LLC | Chief Executive Officer | Since 2020 | Distribution affiliate within broader complex |
Fixed Compensation
- The proxy discloses compensation for Trustees and “officers, if any, who were compensated by the Fund rather than the Adviser.” In FY 2024 the only officer with Fund-paid compensation disclosed was the Vice President/Ombudsman; Mr. Ball is not listed, indicating his compensation is not paid by the Fund and specific salary/bonus details are not disclosed in the proxy .
- No base salary, target bonus, or actual bonus amounts for Mr. Ball are disclosed in the GLU proxy .
Performance Compensation
- The proxy does not disclose any performance-based incentive plan, metric weightings, targets, actuals, or payout formulas for Mr. Ball (officers compensated by the Adviser are outside the Fund’s compensation table) .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Metric | FY 2023 (as of 12/31/2023) | FY 2024 (as of 12/31/2024) |
|---|---|---|
| Common Shares Beneficially Owned | 0 | 19 |
| Percent of Shares Outstanding | Less than 1% | Less than 1% |
- No vested/unvested breakdown, options, RSUs/PSUs, or pledging disclosures for Mr. Ball are provided in the proxy .
- Stock ownership guidelines for officers and compliance status are not disclosed in the proxy .
Employment Terms
| Term | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Titles | President, Treasurer, Principal Financial and Accounting Officer | |
| Start in Officer Roles at GLU | Since 2017 | |
| External Roles | Senior VP, GAMCO (since 2018); CEO, G. Distributors (since 2020) | |
| Officer Term | Indefinite; holds office until resignation/retirement or until successor is duly elected and qualified | |
| Non-compete/Non-solicit | Not disclosed | — |
| Severance/Change-of-Control | Not disclosed | — |
| Clawbacks/Gross-ups | Not disclosed | — |
Investment Implications
- Equity alignment appears limited: Mr. Ball held 19 GLU common shares as of 12/31/2024 vs. none a year earlier, with ownership under 1% of outstanding shares and no disclosed options or equity awards; this suggests minimal direct equity exposure at the Fund level .
- Compensation levers are opaque from the Fund’s disclosure: because Mr. Ball is compensated by the Adviser rather than GLU, there is no visibility into pay mix, performance metrics, vesting schedules, or severance/change‑of‑control economics, reducing transparency on pay-for-performance alignment and potential insider selling pressure tied to vesting events .
- Tenure and continuity: Serving since 2017 and holding senior roles across GAMCO and the Fund Complex implies high organizational embeddedness and operational continuity, but without disclosed contractual protections (e.g., non-compete, severance), retention risk cannot be evaluated from Fund documents alone .
- Governance/regulatory posture: The Fund reported full Section 16 compliance in 2024 for executive officers, indicating standard insider reporting discipline during the period; no legal or controversy items are disclosed for Mr. Ball in GLU materials reviewed .