Danielle Cupps
About Danielle Cupps
Independent Class I Trustee of XAI Madison Equity Premium Income Fund (MCN); Trustee since 2024 with term continuing until the 2027 annual meeting. Year of birth: 1970. Prior roles include Director, Digital Customer Engagement at McDonald’s (2019–2022), Managing Director roles in private equity/family office, finance/strategy leadership at Boeing, and earlier private equity and Goldman Sachs experience; Board notes her experience in financial, regulatory, and investment matters. Oversees three portfolios in the XAI fund complex.
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| McDonald’s Corporation | Director, Digital Customer Engagement | 2019–2022 | Financial/operational perspective for board oversight cited in qualifications |
| Kinzie Capital Partners (PE) | Managing Director | 2018 | Investment and regulatory experience |
| BLG Capital Advisors (Family Office) | Managing Director | 2016–2018 | Global alternatives oversight |
| Boeing Company | Director, Finance & Chief of Staff to CFO; Corporate & Strategic Development | 2006–2012 | Corporate finance, strategy, and governance readiness |
| Code Hennessy & Simmons (PE) | Vice President | 2000–2005 | Private equity investing and transactions |
| Goldman, Sachs & Co. | Associate, Private Equity Funds Group | 1998–2000 | Sponsor/fund diligence |
External Roles
| Category | Detail |
|---|---|
| Public company boards | None disclosed over the past five years |
| Portfolios overseen in XAI fund complex | 3 (including MCN) |
Board Governance
- Classification and term: Class I Trustee; term runs to the 2027 annual meeting. Independent Trustee.
- Committees: Member, Audit Committee; Member, Governance Committee. Not a committee chair.
- Board leadership: Independent chair (Gregory G. Dingens); committees composed solely of Independent Trustees; independent legal counsel for Independent Trustees; regular executive sessions.
- Meeting cadence and 2024 attendance context: In FY 2024 the Board held 6 meetings; Audit Committee 5; Governance Committee 6. (Individual attendance percentages not disclosed.)
- Committee charters: Audit Committee Charter (approved Dec 2, 2024) and Governance Committee Charter (approved Dec 2, 2024) available on the fund website.
Fixed Compensation
| Item | FY 2024 | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Aggregate compensation from MCN (trust-level) | None | Officers/trustees affiliated with adviser receive no fund-level comp; Independent Trustee comp presented at complex level |
| Total compensation from XAI fund complex | $60,000 | For fiscal year ended Dec 31, 2024 |
| Effective Jan 1, 2025 – Trustee Fee Schedule (Fund Complex) | Amount | Allocation |
|---|---|---|
| Annual retainer (all Independent Trustees) | $66,000 | Allocated among funds based on managed assets |
| Audit Committee Chair additional | $17,500 | Not applicable to Cupps (member, not chair) |
| Board Chair additional | $10,000 | Chair: Dingens |
| Governance Committee Chair additional | $5,000 | Chair: Franklin |
- Pension/retirement: The Fund does not accrue or pay retirement/pension benefits to Trustees.
Performance Compensation
| Performance-linked component | Disclosure status |
|---|---|
| Bonus/variable pay | Not disclosed for Trustees; proxy lists cash retainers and chair fees only |
| Equity awards (RSUs/PSUs/options) | Not disclosed for Trustees; no equity awards listed in Trustee Compensation table |
| Performance metrics tied to director pay | Not disclosed |
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Dimension | Detail |
|---|---|
| Current public company directorships | None disclosed for Cupps |
| Related-party/affiliate transactions (screen) | No interests >$120,000 by independent trustees/nominees (including Cupps) in the adviser, sub-adviser, or affiliates over last five years; none in transactions >$120,000 with the Fund/adviser/affiliates since beginning of last two fiscal years. |
Expertise & Qualifications
- Board’s stated rationale: Availability/commitment, financial expertise, ability to evaluate information and interact effectively with adviser, sub-adviser, service providers; Cupps’ experience covers financial, regulatory, and investment matters.
- Specific domain experience cited: Corporate finance and strategy (Boeing), customer engagement/operations (McDonald’s), private equity/family office investing and GP/LP perspectives (Kinzie, BLG, CHS, Goldman).
Equity Ownership
| Holder | MCN Shares Owned | Dollar Range in MCN | Aggregate Dollar Range in All Registered Investment Companies Overseen |
|---|---|---|---|
| Danielle Cupps (as of Dec 31, 2024) | 0 | $0 | Over $100,000 |
- Group ownership: Trustees and officers as a group owned <1% of MCN outstanding shares as of Dec 31, 2024.
Governance Assessment
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Positives
- Independent trustee with deep finance/PE/corporate operations background across blue-chip and alternatives; contributes to oversight depth in financial/regulatory/investment matters.
- Member of both Audit and Governance Committees; committees comprised solely of independent trustees; independent chair and independent counsel support robust oversight.
- No related-party transactions or affiliate interests disclosed for independent nominees (including Cupps) over required lookbacks; mitigates conflict risk.
- Transparent committee charters and meeting activity; FY 2024 Board (6), Audit (5), Governance (6) meetings indicate active cadence.
-
Watch items / potential red flags
- Ownership alignment: 0 MCN shares reported as of Dec 31, 2024; while trustees oversee three portfolios in the complex, absence of direct MCN holdings may be viewed as weaker “skin-in-the-game.”
- Compensation structure is cash-based retainers with no disclosed equity or performance linkage for trustees; while standard for funds, lack of equity linkage may limit direct alignment with MCN share performance.
-
Compensation market context
- Trustee pay increased complex-wide from $60,000 (Cupps’ FY 2024 total) to a $66,000 base retainer effective Jan 1, 2025, with additional fees for chairs (which Cupps does not hold).
-
Overall view
- Independence, dual-committee service, and no related-party exposure are supportive of board effectiveness; primary alignment consideration is the absence of direct MCN share ownership as of the last reported date.