Daniela Mielke
About Daniela Mielke
Daniela Mielke (age 59) is an independent director of WisdomTree, Inc., serving since September 2022; she chairs the Technology Strategy Committee and sits on the Nominating & Governance Committee. Her background spans executive roles in payments, fintech, and strategy at RS2, Vantiv, PayPal, Visa, McKinsey, and her advisory firm, with degrees from École hôtelière de Lausanne (Hospitality), IMD (MBA), and the University of Fribourg (MS Economics), plus NACD Directorship and Cyber-Risk certifications.
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Commerce Technology Advisors, LLC | Managing Partner & Founder | Apr 2016–present | Advises tech/financial services/PE on growth, payments, AI; founder-led strategic advisory impact. |
| RS2 Inc. (North America) | Chief Executive Officer | Feb 2018–Dec 2020 | Led payments processor expansion across Europe/APAC; executive leadership in merchant acquiring. |
| Vantiv, Inc. | Chief Strategy & Product Officer | Sep 2013–Apr 2016 | Directed strategy/product at largest U.S. merchant acquirer; scaled payments capabilities. |
| PayPal Inc. | VP, Head of Global Strategy & Market Intelligence | May 2010–Sep 2013 | Global strategy leadership; market intelligence across digital payments. |
| a-connect | Co-founder; West Coast Ops & Global Marketing Lead | 2001; 2007–2009 | Built consulting operations; drove global marketing; financial services client work. |
| Visa International | VP Product; SVP Strategy & Market Intelligence | 2002–2007 | Product strategy and market insights in global card networks. |
| McKinsey & Company | Engagement Manager | 1998–2002 | Management consulting across industries; strategy execution experience. |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| PROG Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: PRG) | Director | Sep 2024–present | Fintech holding company board service. |
| The Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ: TBBK) | Director (prior) | Aug 2019–Nov 2024 | Bank holding company board. |
| Nuvei Corporation (TSX: NVEI; NVEI.U) | Director (prior) | Aug 2020–Nov 2024 | Global payments technology provider. |
| FINCA International | Director (prior) | 2018–2023 | Global NGO focused on alleviating poverty. |
| FTAC Athena Acquisition Corp. | Director (prior) | 2021–2023 | SPAC board service. |
Board Governance
- Committee assignments: Technology Strategy Committee Chair; Nominating & Governance Committee member; she ceased Audit Committee service in January 2025 as part of refresh and chair rotations.
- Independence: WT’s board is majority independent; all directors except the CEO are independent; Mielke is listed as independent.
- Attendance: Board held 13 meetings in 2024; committees met regularly (Audit 8, Compensation 5, N&G 4); aggregate board/committee attendance was 99%, with each director at least 75%.
- Executive sessions: Independent directors meet in executive session without management throughout the year.
- Governance practices: Majority voting, proxy access, stock ownership guidelines, prohibition on pledging/hedging/derivatives, robust self-assessments, director education via NACD, and over-boarding limits (max four public boards; audit members on ≤3 audit committees).
Fixed Compensation
| Component (2024) | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Annual cash retainer | $100,000 | Standard non-employee director cash retainer. |
| Committee fees (cash) | Included | 2024 committee fee schedule: Audit Chair $25,000 / member $12,500; Compensation Chair $40,000 / member $15,000; N&G Chair $15,000 / member $7,500; Annual Meeting Chair $12,500 / member $7,500; Tech Strategy Chair $15,000 / member $7,500 (established Jan 2025; no 2024 payments). |
| Equity (restricted stock or DRSUs) | $100,000 | Granted after annual meeting; 1-year vest; directors can elect DRSUs under deferred program. |
| Mielke 2024 total cash | $120,000 | Fees earned/paid in cash. |
| Mielke 2024 equity grant FV | $99,997 | DRSUs; grant-date fair value; 10,152 units granted June 12, 2024. |
| Mielke 2024 total | $219,997 | Sum of cash and equity grant fair value. |
- Vesting: Director restricted stock/DRSUs vest one year from grant date; DRSUs payable upon separation, specified date, or qualifying sale event under Section 409A definitions.
Performance Compensation
| Performance metric | Applicability to director pay | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Performance-based metrics | Not applicable | WT non-employee director compensation consists of cash retainers and time-based equity (restricted stock/DRSUs); no performance-conditional metrics for directors were disclosed. |
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Company | Nature | Potential interlock/conflict with WT |
|---|---|---|
| PROG Holdings | External public board | No related-party transactions with WT disclosed since Jan 1, 2024. |
| The Bancorp (prior) | External public board | No WT related-party transactions disclosed. |
| Nuvei (prior) | External public board | No WT related-party transactions disclosed. |
- Related-party transactions: WT discloses no transactions >$120,000 involving directors/executives/5% holders since Jan 1, 2024, other than noted legacy items unrelated to Mielke.
Expertise & Qualifications
- Payments, fintech, and commerce technology leadership; scaling merchant acquiring and payment processing (RS2, Vantiv, PayPal, Visa).
- Strategy and product development, market intelligence, and AI advisory across financial services.
- Board-level technology and cybersecurity oversight; NACD certifications in Directorship and Cyber-Risk; mapped skills include Corporate Governance, Information Technology/Cybersecurity Oversight, Digital Transformation/Marketing, Financial Services/Asset Management.
Equity Ownership
| Item | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Total beneficial ownership | 41,453 shares | Less than 0.1% of shares outstanding. |
| Ownership % of SO | <0.1% | Based on 147,031,590 shares outstanding (record date Apr 23, 2025). |
| Unvested units | 10,152 DRSUs | Granted June 12, 2024; vest within ~1 year; as of 12/31/2024 held 10,152 unvested DRSUs. |
| Pledging/hedging | Prohibited | WT insider trading policy bans pledging, hedging, short sales, derivatives. |
| Ownership guidelines | 5x base retainer | As of Nov 30, 2024, Mielke (and several newer directors) had not yet met guidelines; new directors have time to comply. |
Governance Assessment
- Positives: Independent director with deep payments/fintech and AI expertise; chairs newly formed Technology Strategy Committee (AI, blockchain, digital assets oversight), aligning board skills to WT’s strategic focus.
- Board effectiveness: High attendance (99% aggregate) and refreshed committee chairs; independent, declassified board; robust governance practices (majority voting, proxy access, self-assessments, director education).
- Alignment: Time-based annual equity grants and stock ownership guidelines enhance skin-in-the-game, with anti-hedging/pledging to protect alignment.
- Watch items / RED FLAGS: As of Nov 30, 2024, Mielke had not yet met the 5x retainer guideline (consistent with recent board entrants); monitor progress to compliance. Over-boarding limits exist (≤4 public boards) and she appears within limits after stepping off prior boards in 2024. No related-party transactions disclosed involving Mielke.
- Shareholder backdrop: 2024 say-on-pay approval was ~88%, indicating generally supportive investor sentiment toward WT’s compensation governance.