Kirk C. Lehneis
About Kirk C. Lehneis
Kirk C. Lehneis (year of birth: 1974) serves as President of NYLI MacKay DefinedTerm Muni Opportunities Fund, with an indefinite term and first elected in 2017 . He is also Chief Operating Officer and Senior Managing Director of New York Life Investment Management LLC and New York Life Investment Management Holdings LLC (since 2016), and holds multiple affiliated leadership roles across distribution, service operations, and ETF/fund trusts within the New York Life Investments complex . Officers are elected annually by the Board and are considered “interested persons” due to their affiliation with New York Life Insurance Company and/or New York Life Investment Management LLC .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York Life Investment Management LLC | Managing Director, Product Development | 2010–2015 | Product development leadership |
| New York Life Investment Management LLC | Senior Managing Director, Global Product Development | 2015–2016 | Global product development leadership |
| New York Life Investment Management LLC and Holdings LLC | Chief Operating Officer and Senior Managing Director | Since 2016 | Operations leadership across NYLIM |
| NYLIFE Distributors LLC | Member, Board of Managers | Since 2017 | Distribution oversight |
| NYLIFE Distributors LLC | Senior Managing Director | Since 2018 | Distribution leadership |
| NYLIM Service Company LLC | Chairman of the Board and Senior Managing Director | Since 2017 | Service operations oversight |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York Life Investments ETF Trust | Trustee, President, Principal Executive Officer | Since 2018 | ETF complex leadership |
| New York Life Investments Active ETF Trust | Trustee, President, Principal Executive Officer | Since 2018 | Active ETF complex leadership |
| NYLI CBRE Global Infrastructure Megatrends Term Fund | President | Since 2021 | Term fund leadership |
| NYLI MacKay Muni Income Opportunities Fund | President | Since 2024 | Municipal income fund leadership |
| New York Life Investments Funds Trust | President | Since 2017 | Open-end funds leadership |
| New York Life Investments Funds | President | Since 2017 | Open-end funds leadership |
| New York Life Investments VP Funds Trust | President | Since 2017 | Variable products fund leadership |
Fixed Compensation
- The proxy statement lists officers and their roles, but does not disclose officer-specific compensation (base salary, bonus, equity awards) for Fund officers; compensation disclosure focuses on Independent Trustee compensation structure and amounts .
- Officers are “interested persons” due to affiliation with New York Life Insurance Company and/or New York Life Investment Management LLC, and are elected annually by the Board; no officer pay tables or employment agreements are disclosed at the Fund level .
Performance Compensation
- No disclosure of performance-based incentives (metrics, weightings, targets, payouts) for Fund officers in the proxy statement .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Ownership Metric | As of | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Trustees and Officers of the Fund (as a group) beneficial ownership of Fund shares | Proxy date (July 21, 2025) | Less than 1% |
| Policy: Trustees, officers or agents may acquire, own, and dispose of Shares like any other shareholder | 8-K trust declaration (Dec 2024) | Permitted; no restrictions noted beyond by-laws and 1940 Act |
| Section 16(a) reporting compliance | Proxy date (July 21, 2025) | Management states Reporting Persons complied with applicable filing requirements and were timely |
- No individual breakdown of Mr. Lehneis’s personal holdings (direct/indirect, vested/unvested, options) is provided in the proxy; pledging/hedging is not disclosed .
Employment Terms
| Term Element | Details |
|---|---|
| Position | President of NYLI MacKay DefinedTerm Muni Opportunities Fund |
| Term of Office and First Elected/Appointed | Indefinite term; first elected in 2017 |
| Election cadence | Officers are elected annually by the Board |
| Affiliation status | Considered an “interested person” due to affiliation with New York Life Insurance Company and/or NYL Investment Management LLC |
- No severance, change-of-control, non-compete, or consulting arrangements are disclosed for Fund officers in the proxy .
Investment Implications
- Alignment: Direct equity alignment appears limited at the Fund level, with Trustees and Officers as a group owning less than 1% of shares; this suggests minimal direct insider ownership-related trading signals or selling pressure from officers .
- Disclosure gap: Compensation levers (cash vs equity mix, vesting schedules, performance metrics) for Fund officers are not disclosed in the Fund proxy, implying pay-for-performance assessment would require adviser-level disclosures (not available in Fund filings) .
- Continuity: Tenure as Fund President since 2017 and concurrent senior roles across NYLIM, distribution, service operations, and ETF/fund trusts indicate organizational continuity and embeddedness within the NYL Investments complex .
- Compliance: Stated Section 16(a) compliance reduces regulatory risk signals tied to insider reporting at the Fund level .