Financial Reporting Manager

Former X CEO Linda Yaccarino joins Better board as Nasdaq deadline looms. Better appoints former X CEO Linda Yaccarino to its board as the mortgage lender faces a Nasdaq governance deadline and weaker-than-expected preliminary revenue. Summary. Former X CEO Linda Yaccarino joined Better Home & Finance as an independent director on October 15 as the lender faces Nasdaq board-independence deficiencies and disappointing preliminary third-quarter financial results. Better Home & Finance has appointed former X chief executive Linda Yaccarino as an independent director, bringing a prominent advertising and technology executive onto its board just two days after Nasdaq formally notified the mortgage lender that its board and audit committee did not meet exchange independence requirements. The appointment took effect Thursday, October 15, according to Better's announcement. It is the first director appointment the company has identified under its "Better 2.0" restructuring, which followed founder Vishal Garg's successful campaign to regain control of the board. Yaccarino's arrival puts a recognizable consumer-technology executive into a company facing simultaneous governance, leadership and financial pressures. It also gives Better a director with deep experience in advertising and enterprise partnerships rather than a conventional mortgage-banking background. "When we were building X Money, I saw how friction in financial services affects the lives of hardworking American families, and the single greatest friction is what families experience when getting a mortgage," Yaccarino said in the company's announcement. Better said she will concentrate on expanding use of its Tinman technology platform, controlling costs and improving shareholder returns. Those are company objectives, not outcomes established by the appointment. A new director amid a Nasdaq compliance deadline. Better's October 14 amended Form 8-K disclosed that Nasdaq sent a written notice on October 13 identifying violations of rules requiring a majority-independent board and an audit committee of at least three independent members. Better has until November 27 to submit a plan to regain compliance. If Nasdaq accepts it, the exchange may grant additional time, subject to its rules. The notice has no immediate effect on Better's Nasdaq listing. It also does not establish that Yaccarino's appointment, by itself, resolves the deficiencies. The company must still meet the board-composition and audit-committee standards, and the exchange must assess compliance. Better previously disclosed broader governance problems following the removal and resignation of directors during the proxy fight. The company's October 9 amended filing describes the board changes and the removal of interim chief executive Daniel Lewis on October 5. Better said its board had begun searching for a successor interim CEO. The company has not announced in Thursday's appointment release that the interim leadership search is complete, nor did the release specify a new audit committee roster. Those omissions matter because the company's immediate governance test is measurable: an appropriately independent board and properly constituted committees. Financial pressure behind the boardroom changes. The appointment follows a disappointing preliminary financial update. In an October 14 SEC filing, Better furnished unaudited third-quarter results. The company estimated revenue of approximately $45.1 million, below its earlier $49 million to $52 million outlook, and an adjusted EBITDA loss of roughly $24.8 million to $25.8 million. Better attributed approximately $8 million in quarterly expenses to its proxy dispute. The figures are preliminary and may change when the company completes its normal accounting and reporting process. They should not be treated as audited results. At the same time, Better has reported higher loan volume. Its previously announced preliminary third-quarter production reached $1.39 billion, up 15% from a year earlier, including $790 million processed through Tinman. The company has emphasized that growth in its technology platform even as it has sought to reduce expenses and refocus the business. What Yaccarino brings - and what remains unanswered. Yaccarino led X after a long career at NBCUniversal, where she ran global advertising and partnerships. Better highlighted her work on consumer engagement, large commercial relationships and payment initiatives. Garg, now identified by the company as founder and head of product, platform and innovation, said her experience "serves Better very well." The strategic case is clear enough: Better wants to sell more mortgage and home-equity products through a technology-led model while cutting costs. A director experienced in customer acquisition and partnerships could contribute to that effort. But the mortgage business also depends on funding markets, regulatory compliance, loan quality, servicing arrangements and the economics of converting leads into closed loans. Advertising expertise alone does not answer those questions. Nor does the appointment erase the disagreements that produced the proxy fight. Better's former board had publicly challenged Garg's leadership and business plans, while Garg and his supporters argued the company needed a different strategy. The change in control settled who would direct the company; it did not settle the underlying business debate. Investors and industry counterparties will now be watching for a permanent or interim chief executive appointment, the company's Nasdaq compliance plan, its completed third-quarter results and evidence that Better can turn loan-volume and platform growth into more durable operating performance. Featured photograph: Lower Manhattan near Better's New York headquarters. Siegfried Poepperl/Unsplash. Illustrative image; not a photograph of the appointment.

Better Home & Finance reported preliminary third-quarter loan volume of $1.395 billion, within its guidance range of $1.375 billion to $1.525 billion. Total net revenues rose 8.6% year over year to $45.1 million but fell below the $49.0 million to $52.0 million guidance. Net loss was $33.1 million to $34.1 million. Adjusted EBITDA loss was $24.8 million to $25.8 million, against guidance of $15.0 million to $18.0 million. About $8.0 million of proxy-related expenses drove the gap. Founder Vishal Garg, who says he was fired on August 3, blamed the board's proxy fight for lost volume and revenue. The company holds $81 million in cash and cash equivalents. It expects its UK bank sale, due to close in the first quarter of 2027, to add $65 million.