Nicholas Yu
About Nicholas Yu
Nicholas Yu, 43, serves as Vice President, Legal at Wag! Group Co. (Nasdaq: PET) since December 2023, overseeing corporate transactions, litigation, governance, and regulatory matters; he joined Wag! in September 2020 as Senior Litigation Counsel and was promoted to Director of Legal in May 2021 . He previously practiced as an intellectual property litigator at Latham & Watkins LLP (Silicon Valley) from 2014–2020 and holds a J.D. from the University of California College of the Law, San Francisco, and a B.A. in Molecular Cell Biology from UC Berkeley . Company performance during his tenure shows revenue declined from $83.9M in 2023 to $70.5M in 2024 and Adjusted EBITDA moved from +$0.7M (2023) to -$1.1M (2024) .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wag! Group Co. | Vice President, Legal | Dec 2023–Present | Leads all legal matters including corporate transactions, litigation, governance, and regulatory . |
| Wag! Group Co. | Director of Legal | May 2021–Dec 2023 | Expanded oversight across corporate governance and legal operations . |
| Wag! Group Co. | Senior Litigation Counsel | Sep 2020–May 2021 | Core litigation counsel; corporate/legal support during SPAC/BCA period . |
| Latham & Watkins LLP | Intellectual Property Litigator | 2014–2020 | Managed high-profile IP litigation; broad tech and consumer sector exposure . |
External Roles
None disclosed in company proxy filings or executive biographies .
Fixed Compensation
- Wag! is an Emerging Growth Company and a Smaller Reporting Company, disclosing compensation only for Named Executive Officers (NEOs) (CEO, President/CPO, CTO). Nicholas Yu is not an NEO; therefore, no individual salary/bonus disclosure is provided in the proxies .
- 2023 NEO salaries increased to $400,000 and were paired with RSU grants; these do not necessarily apply to the VP Legal role .
Performance Compensation
- Company-level: For NEOs in 2023, the Executive Bonus Plan used Revenue and Adjusted EBITDA, equally weighted, with a 67% of base salary target and linear payout scaling from 80%–200%; no payout below 80% of target .
- Not disclosed for VP Legal specifically; no individual target metrics or payouts for Nicholas Yu in the proxies .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
- Individual beneficial ownership for Nicholas Yu is not disclosed; beneficial ownership tables cover NEOs and directors only .
- Hedging and pledging: Wag!’s insider trading policy prohibits short sales, derivative hedging and prohibits Section 16 insiders (which includes executive officers) from pledging company securities; margin accounts are disallowed .
- Stock ownership guidelines for executive officers are overseen by the Compensation Committee (policy governance noted; specific multiples not disclosed) .
Employment Terms
- Employment agreements: Wag! states it has employment agreements with executive officers, but no VP Legal-specific terms are disclosed .
- Severance & change-of-control (company framework): For NEOs, severance includes 6 months base salary and COBRA; under the Omnibus Plan, if awards are not assumed in a change-in-control, restrictions lapse (acceleration) . These structures indicate typical executive protections, but VP Legal specifics are not disclosed .
- Equity award timing practices: The company does not time awards around MNPI; it currently grants RSUs and does not grant option-like instruments; if option grants resume, the Board will evaluate timing policies .
Performance & Track Record
| Metric | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue ($USD Millions) | $83.9 | $70.5 |
| Adjusted EBITDA ($USD Millions) | $0.7 | -$1.1 |
Additional context:
- Full-year 2024 segment revenues: Services $21.6M, Wellness $42.7M, Pet Food & Treats $6.2M .
Vesting Schedules and Insider Selling Pressure
- VP Legal-specific equity holdings/vesting are not disclosed in proxies; no Nicholas Yu Form 4 transaction data is available in the provided filings; Section 16 compliance noted for other insiders (e.g., one late Form 4 for another executive) .
- Company-level RSU vesting structures for NEOs include both cliff (e.g., 33%) and quarterly vesting schedules on recent grants; indicative of retention orientation, but not specific to VP Legal .
Governance & Policies Relevant to Alignment
- Compensation Committee: Independent; chaired by the Lead Independent Director; retains an independent consultant (CSI) for peer benchmarking and program design; oversees stock ownership guidelines and clawback policies .
- Policy prohibiting hedging/pledging and margin accounts for covered persons (including executive officers) supports alignment and reduces risk of forced selling .
Company-Level Context (for retention risk)
- 2025 proxy proposed a reverse stock split to address Nasdaq bid-price deficiency and continued listing concerns; multiple Nasdaq deficiency notices were received in 2024–2025, introducing macro retention and morale risk factors across executives .
- Strategic alternatives review announced in March 2025 (potential investments, partnerships, sale/merger), which can affect executive compensation structures, vesting, and retention dynamics .
Investment Implications
- Pay-for-performance assessment for VP Legal is constrained by EGC disclosure limits; no individual salary/bonus/equity detail for Nicholas Yu. However, policies banning hedging/pledging and the Committee’s oversight on ownership guidelines suggest shareholder-friendly alignment frameworks .
- Company-level financial pressure (revenue decline, negative Adjusted EBITDA in 2024) amid listing deficiencies and potential reverse split elevates execution/retention risk, increasing the importance of legal leadership stability during strategic alternatives .
- Action items for investors: monitor future proxies and 8-Ks for VP Legal-specific compensation terms (severance, change-of-control, equity awards), Form 4 insider transactions indicating selling pressure or vesting events, and any changes to ownership guidelines or clawback enforcement .