AllianceBernstein fund board chair steps back after 8 years

Marshall C. Turner, Jr., 81, stepped down as chair of the AB Funds after eight years, but will continue as an independent director on the board that oversees 75 funds managed by AllianceBernstein L.P.

Turner’s replacement as board chair is fellow independent director Garry L. Moody, 70, who has chaired the funds’ audit committee since 2008 and stepped up to chair the full board beginning in January of this year, according to a Jan. 27 SEC filing.

The funds did not say why Turner stepped down, but the filing did note that AB Funds boards have no stated term limits or retirement ages for directors.

Turner, who has been a private investor since prior to 2018 according to the filing, has overseen various funds within the AB Funds complex since 1992.

He was chairman and CEO of semiconductor manufacturer Dupont Photomasks, Inc., which became Toppan Photomasks following a 2005 acquisition. Turner held a seat on the board of groundbreaking semiconductor design firm Xilinx, Inc., between 2007 and Xinlinx’ acquisition by leading chip maker AMD, Inc., in 2022.

He’s been a permanent or interim CEO four other times, served as general partner of institutional venture-capital partnerships and served on the boards of other investment advisers and non-profit foundations, including the George Lucas Educational Foundation.

Moody, who is also listed as a private investor, was vice chairman and U.S. global investment management practice managing partner at Deloitte & Touche LLP, where he worked from 1995 to 2008. He was president of Fidelity Accounting and Custody Services Co. between 1993 and 1995 and previously worked at Ernst & Young LLP.

He is a member of the governing council at the Independent Directors Council and sits on the Investment Company Institute‘s Board of Governors.

The other independent directors on the board include Jorge A. Bermudez, 71; Michael J. Downey, 79; Nancy P. Jacklin, 74; Jeanette W. Loeb, 70; and Carol C. McMullen, 67.

The board’s single interested director is Onur Erzan, 47, who works for the adviser as senior vice president, head of the global client group and head of private wealth.

Compensation for independent directors ranged between $330,000 and $478,500 during the fiscal year ending Oct. 31, 2022.

In addition to the audit committee, the board maintains a standing governance and nominating committee and an independent directors committee.

The chief compliance officer is Jennifer Friedland, 48, a company vice president who was appointed in 2022 to oversee the company’s ETF funds as CCO before expanding her responsibilities in January to include its mutual funds as well.