Katie Gebauer
About Katie Gebauer
Katie Gebauer (year of birth: 1986) serves as Vice President of abrdn World Healthcare Fund (THW) and is currently Chief Compliance Officer—ETFs at abrdn Inc; she joined abrdn in 2014 . She has held registered roles with FINRA through Aberdeen Fund Distributors LLC since 2014 and has been CCO—ETFs since 2021 . The THW proxy states officers are compensated by abrdn Inc., not the Fund, and does not disclose individual cash/equity pay or performance-linked metrics for officers, limiting pay-for-performance analysis at the Fund level . As of April 1, 2025, Trustees and officers collectively owned less than 1% of THW’s shares, and individual officer holdings (including Gebauer) are not specified .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| abrdn Inc. | Business Risk Analyst | 10/2014–07/2021 | Compliance and risk support across registered products, foundational to subsequent CCO responsibilities . |
| abrdn Inc. | Chief Compliance Officer—ETFs | 07/2021–present | Leads ETF compliance; oversight for abrdn ETFs Advisors LLC and ETF complex processes . |
| Aberdeen Fund Distributors, LLC | Registered Representative | 10/2014–present | Distribution compliance and licensing; supports governance alignment for registered funds . |
| THW (abrdn World Healthcare Fund) | Vice President (Fund Officer) | Since 2025 | Fund officer responsibilities; supports governance and compliance interface with the Board . |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| abrdn ETFs Trust | Chief Compliance Officer and Vice President | Since 2023 | CCO for abrdn ETFs Advisors LLC; enforces proxy voting and compliance frameworks across ETFs . |
| abrdn Funds (Active ETFs) | Chief Compliance Officer (Trust) | Appointed June 11, 2025 | Head of U.S. Registered Fund Compliance; expanded remit across abrdn Funds complex . |
| abrdn Australia Equity Fund (IAF) | Vice President (Fund Officer) | Since 2023 | Officer role across abrdn closed-end/open-end registrants; integrated compliance influence . |
Fixed Compensation
- Officers of THW are employees of, and compensated by, abrdn Inc. or an affiliate; none of the Funds’ executive officers or directors who are also affiliated with abrdn received any compensation from the Fund for the fiscal period .
- None of the Funds have any bonus, profit sharing, pension or retirement plans at the Fund level, underscoring that officer cash/equity pay is not funded or disclosed by THW .
Performance Compensation
- No performance-based compensation metrics (e.g., revenue growth, EBITDA, TSR) are disclosed for Fund officers; the proxy provides no individual targets, weights, or payouts for THW officers .
- As a compliance executive role, compensation is administered by abrdn Inc.; THW disclosures do not provide fund-level performance links for officer pay .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
- As of April 1, 2025, each Fund’s Trustees and officers, in aggregate, owned less than 1% of THW’s outstanding equity; specific officer holdings for Gebauer are not disclosed .
- The proxy identifies trustee dollar ranges, but does not provide individual officer share counts or pledging/hedging disclosures; no pledging by trustees is indicated, and none of the Independent Trustees or immediate family members own shares of the Investment Adviser .
Employment Terms
- Officer appointment/tenure: Officers are appointed annually by the Board and serve until a successor is duly elected and qualifies .
- Role and background: Gebauer serves as Vice President of the Fund and as CCO—ETFs at abrdn Inc; joined abrdn in 2014 .
- Severance, change-of-control, clawbacks, non-compete/non-solicit, garden leave: Not disclosed in THW proxy for officers .
- Section 16 reporting: Funds reported timely Section 16 filings by officers and trustees for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2023 .
Investment Implications
- Compensation alignment: THW does not pay or disclose officer compensation; pay-for-performance analysis for Gebauer must be inferred at the abrdn Inc. level and is not available from THW, reducing visibility into incentive alignment and payout risk at the Fund .
- Insider selling pressure: Aggregate officer/trustee ownership under 1% and absence of disclosed individual officer holdings suggest minimal direct insider selling pressure signals at THW; no Gebauer-specific Form 4 data appears in the proxy .
- Retention risk: Gebauer’s long tenure at abrdn (since 2014) and expanded CCO remit across abrdn ETFs and Funds in 2025 indicate institutional embedment; employment contracts or severance economics are not disclosed, leaving limited insight into retention protections or mobility triggers .
- Governance and execution: As a compliance leader, Gebauer’s impact is operational risk mitigation rather than portfolio performance; lack of performance metric disclosures for officers means no tradable pay-performance catalysts from the Fund’s filings. THW-level trading signals should focus on fund strategy/discount dynamics rather than officer compensation events.
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