William Matlack
About William F. Matlack
Independent director of Silver Bull Resources (SVBL) since March 2, 2023; age 70 as of the 2025 proxy. Veteran geologist with 20+ years in mining (Santa Fe Pacific Gold/Newmont; Gold Fields), later metals & mining equity research (Citigroup, BMO Capital Markets) and investment banking (Scarsdale Equities). Holds the Accredited Director designation (ICSA Canada) and is designated the Audit Committee “financial expert.” Independent under TSX rules. Tenure on SVBL’s board since 2023.
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Klondex Mines Limited | Interim CEO and Director | 2012–2018 | Led transformation from explorer to producer in Nevada |
| Santa Fe Pacific Gold Corp. (now Newmont) | Geologist (exploration/development) | Not disclosed | Involved in world-class gold discoveries (NV, CA) |
| Gold Fields Limited | Geologist (exploration/development) | Not disclosed | Exploration and development experience |
| Citigroup | Equity Research Analyst, Metals & Mining | Not disclosed | Financial markets expertise |
| BMO Capital Markets | Equity Research Analyst, Metals & Mining | Not disclosed | Financial literacy credential |
| Scarsdale Equities | Investment Banker, Metals & Mining | Not disclosed | Capital markets and transactions |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Timberline Resources Corp. | Director | Oct 2019 – Aug 2024 | Public company directorship (ended Aug 2024) |
Board Governance
- Independence status: Independent (TSX Section 311); Audit Committee independent (Rule 10A-3).
- Committee assignments:
- Audit Committee: Member and Chair; designated “financial expert”; 4 meetings in FY2024; attended all.
- Compensation Committee: Member (with Underwood and Edgar); 1 meeting in FY2024; attended.
- Corporate Governance & Nominating Committee: Member (with Underwood).
- Board attendance: Board met 4 times in FY2024; all directors attended 100%.
- Shareholder communications: As Audit Chair, serves as Board Communications Designee for shareholder correspondence.
- Shareholder support: Re-elected with ~99.0% “For” votes (7,551,885 For; 75,788 Withheld) at April 18, 2024 meeting.
Fixed Compensation
Director cash retainers and chair fees; independent directors receive $20,000/year cash plus chair premiums; Audit Chair $6,000; Comp and Nominating Chairs $1,500 each.
| Metric | FY 2023 | FY 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Annual director cash retainer policy | $20,000 | $20,000 |
| Audit Chair cash premium (policy) | $6,000 | $6,000 |
| Cash actually paid to Matlack | $16,511 (incl. $3,810 Audit Chair) | $26,000 (incl. $3,810 Audit Chair) |
Notes: Policy-level chair fees are disclosed; Matlack’s cash received reflects timing and year-specific amounts as reported.
Performance Compensation
SVBL grants equity to directors (stock options) under the 2019 Plan; awards are service-based, not tied to performance metrics. No director-specific performance metrics disclosed for equity.
| Equity Compensation to Matlack | FY 2023 | FY 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Option awards (grant-date fair value, USD) | $11,206 | $8,704 |
| Performance metrics tied to director equity | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Company | Role | Committee Roles | Interlocks/Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Timberline Resources Corp. | Director | Not disclosed | Served Oct 2019–Aug 2024. No disclosed SVBL compensation committee interlocks with other companies. |
Compensation Committee interlocks: None of the current members (Underwood, Matlack, Edgar) served as Company employees during FY2024; no transactions requiring Item 404(a) disclosure among current committee members (except Edgar’s historical officer status noted separately).
Expertise & Qualifications
- Accredited Director designation (ICSA Canada); financially literate via equity research background.
- Deep technical and operating experience in mineral exploration and development; Nevada and California gold discoveries noted.
- Capital markets experience in research and banking; designated Audit Committee “financial expert.”
Equity Ownership
- Insider trading policy prohibits short sales, options, swaps, and holding/pledging SVBL securities in margin accounts or as loan collateral (reduces hedging/pledging risk).
| Ownership (Record Date) | FY 2024 (as of 2024-02-22) | FY 2025 (as of 2025-02-20) |
|---|---|---|
| Total beneficial ownership (shares) | 1,350,005 | 1,450,005 |
| % of common stock outstanding | 2.82% | 3.02% |
| Direct shares | 800,005 | 800,005 |
| Warrants (exercisable ≤60 days) | 400,000 | 400,000 |
| Stock options (exercisable ≤60 days) | 150,000 | 250,000 |
| Shares pledged as collateral | Prohibited by policy | Prohibited by policy |
Governance Assessment
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Strengths
- Independence and expertise: Independent director; Audit Chair and designated financial expert; high shareholder support (99% For in 2024). These factors bolster audit oversight credibility and investor confidence.
- Engagement: 100% attendance at Board and Audit Committee meetings in FY2024 indicates strong engagement.
- Alignment: Meaningful ownership (3.02%) with increasing options year-over-year and company-wide prohibition on hedging/pledging support alignment.
-
Watch items
- Compensation Committee composition includes one non-independent (Edgar), though Matlack and Underwood are independent; some investors prefer fully independent compensation committees.
- Equity awards to directors are service-based with no disclosed performance metrics; consider advocating for performance-contingent equity to enhance pay-for-performance optics.
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Say-on-Pay and Shareholder Feedback
- 2024 Say-on-Pay: 95.4% For; frequency: triennial preferred by 69.3%. Signals broad investor support for compensation framework.
-
Related-party/Conflicts
- Key Persons Retention Agreement relates to executives and certain insiders; Matlack is not listed among Key Persons. Audit Committee reviews related-party transactions. No Matlack-specific related-party transactions disclosed.
RED FLAGS: None explicitly disclosed for Matlack. No hedging/pledging, no attendance issues, no legal proceedings, and strong re-election support.