Marc Cardella
About Marc Cardella
Marc Cardella is Vice President and Controller (Principal Financial Officer) of the Nuveen NASDAQ 100 Dynamic Overwrite Fund (QQQX). Born in 1984, he has served in this officer role since 2024 and is Senior Managing Director, Head of Public Investment Finance at Nuveen; he also holds senior finance roles across TIAA affiliates (Teachers Advisors, LLC; TIAA‑CREF Investment Management, LLC; Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America; TIAA SMA Strategies LLC) and serves as Principal Financial Officer, Principal Accounting Officer, and Treasurer for TIAA Separate Account VA‑1 and the College Retirement Equities Fund (CREF) . Officers receive no compensation from the Funds, and the proxy does not disclose fund‑level officer performance metrics (TSR, revenue growth, EBITDA growth) or incentive linkages for QQQX . Officers are elected annually by the Board to serve until successors are elected and qualified; Cardella’s term is listed as indefinite .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nuveen | Senior Managing Director, Head of Public Investment Finance | Not disclosed | Finance leadership across public investment vehicles and fund complex |
| Teachers Advisors, LLC | Senior Managing Director | Not disclosed | Senior finance role for TIAA investment management affiliate |
| TIAA‑CREF Investment Management, LLC | Senior Managing Director | Not disclosed | Senior finance role supporting investment management operations |
| Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America | Managing Director | Not disclosed | Corporate finance role at TIAA parent |
| TIAA SMA Strategies LLC | Managing Director | Not disclosed | Finance oversight for separately managed account strategies |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| TIAA Separate Account VA‑1 | Principal Financial Officer, Principal Accounting Officer, Treasurer | Current | Financial stewardship for insurance separate account |
| College Retirement Equities Fund (CREF) | Principal Financial Officer, Principal Accounting Officer, Treasurer | Current | Financial stewardship for retirement fund complex |
Fixed Compensation
Officers of the Funds serve without any compensation from the Funds; the CCO is paid by the Adviser (Nuveen), with the Funds reimbursing an allocable portion of the CCO’s incentive compensation .
| Component | Disclosure status | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Base salary | Not disclosed at Fund level; officers receive no compensation from the Funds | |
| Target bonus % | Not disclosed at Fund level | |
| Actual bonus paid | Not disclosed at Fund level | |
| Cash retainer/fees from Fund | None for officers | |
| Perquisites | Not disclosed at Fund level |
Performance Compensation
| Metric | Weighting | Target | Actual | Payout | Vesting |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fund‑level officer incentives (TSR/revenue/EBITDA/ESG) | Not applicable; no Fund‑level officer compensation disclosed | — | — | — | — |
Source: Officers receive no compensation from the Funds; no QQQX officer incentive plan or metrics are disclosed in the proxy .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Item | Value | As of | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shares outstanding (QQQX Common Shares) | 48,826,782 | Feb 18, 2025 | |
| Marc Cardella QQQX holdings | Not individually disclosed | Dec 31, 2024 | |
| Board Members/officers group QQQX holdings | 0 shares (all listed individuals show 0 in QQQX) | Dec 31, 2024 | |
| Ownership by Board Members or officers as a group (each Fund) | Less than 1% of outstanding shares | Feb 18, 2025 | |
| Stock ownership guidelines (Board Members) | Expected to invest at least one year of compensation in funds across the Nuveen fund complex | Policy statement | |
| Pledging/Hedging of QQQX shares | Not disclosed | — |
Employment Terms
| Item | Disclosure |
|---|---|
| Title | Vice President and Controller (Principal Financial Officer) |
| Term | Indefinite; officers elected annually to serve until successors are elected and qualified |
| Start in current officer role | Since 2024 |
| Employment agreement | Not disclosed at Fund level |
| Severance provisions | Not disclosed at Fund level |
| Change‑of‑control provisions | Not disclosed at Fund level |
| Clawback provisions | Not disclosed at Fund level |
| Non‑compete / non‑solicit | Not disclosed at Fund level |
| Deferred compensation election | N/A for officers; deferred compensation plan applies to Independent Board Members in participating funds |
Additional compliance context: The Funds report that Board Members and officers complied with applicable Section 16(a) filing requirements during the last fiscal year .
Investment Implications
- Pay‑for‑performance linkage at the Fund level appears limited for officers: the proxy states officers receive no compensation from the Funds and provides no incentive metric disclosure, reducing direct Fund‑level alignment via cash/equity incentives .
- Insider selling pressure in QQQX looks minimal near‑term given disclosed zero QQQX holdings by listed Board Members and officers as of 12/31/2024, and aggregate holdings by insiders at each Fund are under 1% of outstanding shares .
- Governance alignment rests primarily on Board oversight and committee structures rather than officer incentives; Board Members are expected to invest at least one year of compensation across the Fund complex, but this guideline does not extend to officers, which can dilute single‑fund alignment for QQQX .
- Retention risk for QQQX’s principal financial officer role is more a Nuveen/TIAA enterprise consideration than fund‑specific, given Cardella’s senior finance responsibilities across TIAA affiliates and multiple registered products (VA‑1, CREF) .