Damon Rich
About Damon Rich
Damon Rich (age 56) is Chief Financial Officer of Signing Day Sports (SGN), appointed February 4, 2025 after serving as Interim CFO from April 2023 to February 2025. He holds a Bachelor of Accountancy and a Bachelor of Business Administration from New Mexico State University and earned his CPA designation in 1999. Prior experience includes CFO of Daniel Nelson Financial Services since 2019 and senior accounting roles at Safeway, Inc. from 2001–2019. Tenure and background suggest deep accounting, reporting, and controls expertise; company-level TSR or EBITDA/revenue growth targets tied to his compensation are not disclosed.
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Signing Day Sports (SGN) | Chief Financial Officer | Feb 2025–present | Not disclosed |
| Signing Day Sports (SGN) | Interim Chief Financial Officer | Apr 2023–Feb 2025 | Not disclosed |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daniel Nelson Financial Services | Chief Financial Officer | Feb 2019–present | Not disclosed |
| Safeway, Inc. | Accounting Manager – GL/Financial Reporting | Jul 2011–Feb 2019 | Not disclosed |
| Safeway, Inc. | Accounting Manager – Warehouse Payables | Jul 2005–Jul 2011 | Not disclosed |
| Safeway, Inc. | Accountant | May 2001–Jul 2005 | Not disclosed |
| North Phoenix Baptist Church | Controller | Feb 1999–May 2001 | Not disclosed |
Fixed Compensation
| Element | Terms | Period | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base pay | $120/hour, up to 160 hours/month | Rich Employment Agreement dated Feb 4, 2025 | At-will; reimbursed reasonable business expenses; no benefits eligibility |
| Prior consulting pay | $120/hour, up to 120 hours/month | Rich Consulting Agreement dated Jun 14, 2024 | 5-day termination notice; reimbursed reasonable expenses |
| Benefits eligibility | Not eligible for medical, dental, life, vacation, sick leave | From Feb 4, 2025 | Per employment agreement |
| Discretionary cash bonus | $50,000 | Approved Apr 17, 2025 | Additional to any contractual compensation |
Performance Compensation
| Metric/Instrument | Weighting | Target | Actual | Payout | Vesting / Terms | Grant Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Restricted Common Stock (417 shares) | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | 417 shares | Vested upon grant; under 2022 Equity Incentive Plan | Jun 14, 2024 |
| Common Stock (2,604 shares) | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | 2,604 shares | Award stated as “common stock under the Plan”; no vesting schedule disclosed | Oct 16, 2024 |
| Discretionary cash bonus | Discretionary | Not applicable | Not applicable | $50,000 | Approved by Compensation Committee/Board | Apr 17, 2025 |
Notes:
- The proxy describes the Plan’s permissible performance criteria (e.g., revenue, margins, TSR), but specific performance metrics, targets, or formulae used for Mr. Rich’s awards are not disclosed. Awards listed above appear time/discretion-based rather than tied to disclosed performance metrics.
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Item | Value | As-of | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total beneficial ownership (common) | 2,417 shares | Record date Sep 18, 2025 | 0.1% of outstanding common shares (3,947,781 shares outstanding) |
| Ownership as % of shares outstanding | 0.1% | Record date Sep 18, 2025 | Per beneficial ownership table |
| Vested vs unvested breakdown | Not disclosed | — | No outstanding unvested awards disclosed for Mr. Rich in FY2024 table; he is not listed there |
| Shares pledged as collateral | Not disclosed; pledging prohibited absent approval | Policy in effect | Insider Trading Policy prohibits pledging absent approval; no pledges disclosed |
| Hedging/derivatives | Prohibited | Policy in effect | Short sales, options, hedging or monetization transactions prohibited |
| Stock ownership guidelines | Not disclosed | — | No executive ownership guidelines disclosed in proxy |
Employment Terms
| Provision | Details |
|---|---|
| Agreement(s) | Consulting Agreement dated Jun 14, 2024; Executive Employment Agreement dated Feb 4, 2025 |
| Term/Status | At-will employment (from Feb 4, 2025); prior consulting agreement terminable on 5 days’ notice |
| Compensation | $120/hour up to 160 hours/month (employment); prior consulting $120/hour up to 120 hours/month |
| Benefits | Not eligible to participate in benefits plans; no vacation/sick leave |
| Expenses | Reimbursement of reasonable and necessary expenses |
| Severance | None disclosed for Mr. Rich; at-will; no severance/change-of-control terms presented for CFO |
| Clawback | Company adopted NYSE American-aligned Clawback Policy on Nov 2, 2023 (applies to current/former executive officers) |
| Non-compete / Non-solicit | Non-compete during employment; non-solicitation during employment and for one year post-employment; non-disparagement |
| Indemnification | Executive indemnification agreements; advancement of expenses subject to undertaking |
| D&O Insurance | Directors and officers liability insurance maintained |
Investment Implications
- Alignment/cash mix: Rich’s compensation is primarily variable hourly pay (capped at 160 hours/month) with no benefits, plus discretionary bonus; this structure reduces fixed cash burn but increases retention risk versus traditional salaried CFO roles and weakens pay-for-performance linkage absent disclosed metrics.
- Equity alignment: Beneficial ownership is modest at 2,417 shares (0.1%), limiting “skin-in-the-game.” October 2024 award of 2,604 common shares lacks disclosed vesting/performance conditions, suggesting time/discretion-based grants rather than formulaic performance awards.
- Selling pressure: Immediate vesting of the June 2024 417-share award and the absence of disclosed future vesting dates for the October 2024 award reduce scheduled near-term forced-selling catalysts; pledging/hedging prohibitions further lower alignment red flags. Form 4 trading patterns are not disclosed in the proxy.
- Protections & governance: Strong indemnification and D&O insurance coverage provide legal protection; company-wide clawback is in place; non-compete/non-solicit covenants exist, but no severance/change-of-control economics for the CFO are disclosed, implying low termination cost but potentially higher mobility risk.
Overall: Compensation appears discretionary and time-based with limited disclosed performance metrics or ownership scale, which may dampen pay-for-performance alignment. Retention risk is elevated by an at-will, hourly model without benefits or severance, while governance controls (clawback, hedging/pledging prohibitions) mitigate misalignment risks.