Audrey E. Greenberg
About Audrey E. Greenberg
Independent director at New York Mortgage Trust, Inc. since July 2021; age 52. Background spans CFO and senior finance roles across real estate, investment management, and operating companies, plus co-founding a biotech CDMO; MBA from The Wharton School and BS in Business Administration from the University of Arizona. Tenure on NYMT’s board: ~4 years; NYMT affirms her independence under Nasdaq standards, and designates her as an Audit Committee financial expert .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Center for Breakthrough Medicines (now SK pharmteco) | Co-Founder & Chief Business Officer | 2019–Oct 2024 | Built CDMO platform; operational scale-up |
| Exeter Property Group | Senior Vice President | 2018 | Real estate operations/finance |
| Pine Hill Group | Interim CFO & Consultant | 2016–2018 | Finance leadership/consulting |
| Statebridge Company | Chief Financial Officer | 2013–2015 | Mortgage servicing finance |
| WJ Bradley | Chief Financial Officer | 2013 | Mortgage lending finance |
| Independent consultant | Consultant | 2010–2013 | Finance/operations advisory |
| CBRE Global Investors | CFO & Principal | 2009–2010 | Investment management finance |
| ING Clarion Partners | CFO & SVP | 2007–2009 | Real estate investment finance |
| Phoenix Realty Group | Principal & CFO | 2001–2004 | Real estate private equity finance |
| Earlier career | Investment banking/accounting roles | Pre-2001 | Finance and accounting foundation |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| AG Capital Advisers | Chief Executive Officer | Current | Advises biotech/healthcare on capital allocation, scale-up, global expansion |
| NLS Pharmaceutics Ltd. (public) | Director; Audit Committee member | Current | Serves on audit committee; counted for audit committee service limits |
Board Governance
- Independence: NYMT’s board has seven members; five are independent, including Greenberg .
- Committees: Audit Committee (Clement, Norcutt, Greenberg) — all members designated “audit committee financial experts”; Nominating & Corporate Governance Committee (Greenberg, Pendergast, Cheng). No Compensation Committee service disclosed for Greenberg .
- Attendance: Board met 11 times in 2024; all directors met or exceeded 75% combined attendance for board and committee meetings; all directors attended the 2024 Annual Meeting .
- Executive sessions: Independent directors met in executive session four times in 2024; Lead Independent Director (Steven G. Norcutt) presides .
- Leadership structure: Chair separate from CEO; Lead Independent Director role formalized to preserve independent oversight .
Fixed Compensation (Director)
| Metric | 2024 | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Annual cash retainer ($) | 120,000 | $30,000 per quarter |
| Equity grant – DSUs (units) | 18,462 | Granted Aug 2024 under 2017 Stock Plan |
| Equity grant – fair value ($) | 120,000 | Grant date fair value per ASC 718 |
| Total director compensation ($) | 240,000 | Cash + stock |
| DERs on vested DSUs ($) | 3,692 | Dividend equivalents accrued to vest date |
- Directors may elect to receive some/all cash retainer in shares; DSUs vest through the day before the subsequent Annual Meeting (June 11, 2025) and can be deferred to change-in-control or third anniversary; DERs continue until settlement .
Performance Compensation (Director)
| Instrument | Grant Date | Units | Vesting | Settlement/Deferral | Options/Strike |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deferred Stock Units (DSUs) | Aug 2024 | 18,462 | Vest on June 11, 2025 (service-based) | Elect to defer to change-in-control, 3-year anniversary, or earliest of the two | No options disclosed for directors |
- No director performance share awards or options disclosed; director equity is service-based DSUs with DERs; no meeting fees or committee-chair fees disclosed in 2024 .
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Company | Industry | Role | Committee | Potential Interlock/Conflict |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NLS Pharmaceutics Ltd. | Biopharma | Director | Audit | None disclosed with NYMT’s counterparties |
- NYMT policy: related-person transactions >$120k require Audit Committee approval; none material in 2024 .
- Service on other boards: As of March 1, 2025, no director serves on more than two public company boards (including NYMT) .
Expertise & Qualifications
- Designated Audit Committee Financial Expert; meets Nasdaq/SEC audit committee financial literacy requirements .
- Broad CFO and operating experience across real estate, investment management, and credit businesses; founder/operator in biotech CDMO; Wharton MBA; University of Arizona BS .
- Skill set aligns with NYMT’s risk oversight priorities in finance, controls, and governance .
Equity Ownership
| Holder | Beneficial Shares | Percent of Class | Included DSUs | As-of Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Audrey E. Greenberg | 46,684 | <1% | 18,462 | April 17, 2025 |
- Director stock ownership guideline: minimum $360,000 (3× annual cash retainer) in NYMT common stock; all non-employee directors either meet requirement or are within the five-year compliance window. Greenberg’s window runs to the fifth anniversary of her board start (July 2026) if not already compliant .
- Anti-hedging/anti-pledging: Directors prohibited from hedging, short-selling, and pledging company stock .
Governance Assessment
- Committee assignments and expertise: Placement on Audit and Nominating & Corporate Governance aligns her finance and control background with critical oversight functions; designation as an audit committee financial expert is a positive signal for board effectiveness .
- Independence and engagement: Independent status, executive-session participation, and >=75% attendance support governance quality; Lead Independent Director structure enhances board independence .
- Compensation alignment: Director pay mix is balanced between cash and equity; adoption of DSUs (with DERs and deferral to change-in-control/three-year anniversary) enhances long-term alignment without option risk; no discretionary director bonuses disclosed .
- Ownership alignment: Beneficial ownership recorded with DSUs included; subject to robust ownership guideline and anti-hedge/pledge policies, which mitigate misalignment risks .
- Conflicts and related-party exposure: No material related-party transactions in 2024; external board service in biopharma is unrelated to NYMT’s mortgage/REIT operations; committee recusal policy governs any related-person matters .
- RED FLAGS: None disclosed — no pledging/hedging, no related-party transactions, no option repricing, and attendance thresholds met .
Implications: Greenberg’s finance-centric skill set and audit committee role support investor confidence in financial reporting and risk oversight. The DSU-based director equity design and ownership guidelines provide alignment, while independence and absence of conflicts reduce governance risk .