They are notorious for changing key terms in liquidity before you're about to be vested. Vivriti did it already - also given company's trajectory please stay away

Lead Data Scientist

Absolutely not worth it, do not stay a minute @Ta7qy

Product Manager

Growth Manager

Did you recieve  any concrete info on this by now?

Hi all,   Just wanted to understand, how is Yubi with respect to ESOPs. Do they honour ESOP vesting commitments ? Do they provide any liquidity ?   OR this is just some scam ?  Is it worth staying ...

Welcome to Indian Startups's Private Community

Hi all, 

Just wanted to understand, how is Yubi with respect to ESOPs. Do they honour ESOP vesting commitments ? Do they provide any liquidity ? 

OR this is just some scam ?

Is it worth staying & waiting for ESOP vestings ?

Yubi ESOPs vesting & liquidity

Software Engineer

Yubi ESOPs vesting & liquidity- Grapevine

Welcome to Product Managers's Private Community

I work in a fintech company. Revenue and growth wise we are good, we just got acquired by a large internet platform too. Also, last year has been a tremendous learning for me as well. I like being PM but looking to move out of my current industry (lending) as I want to explore other domains and I feel like my CTC here is somewhat low (18.5 + 1.5 bonus) considering my experience (around 4.5 years). My boss said that I will get ESOPS (around 10 lacs) which I can liquidate around 50% this year. Should I wait for my appraisal to complete (will happen around April) and look to switch or should I start preparing for interviews now itself?

Company is good but CTC pinches

I am in discussion with some very early stage startup and if things work out then will be part of the founding team. They have promised to give me same salary as the current company’s salary but give ESOP. Is ESOP worth it if you are founding team member?

The founder has sold his previous company so higher chance of success it looks to me.

Is there any case where person made huge money on ESOP?

Are ESOP worth it? Did it make anyone billionaire?

Engineering Manager

Has anyone sold ESOP’s in secondary market? If yes, how did you find the buyer?

Welcome to Business Roles's Private Community

ESOPs is offered by an early age startup. What are the things I does be aware about? or ask the founders to clarify with me.

Human Resources

Hello guys,
I would want to know what is the benefit of getting ESOPs in an early stage startup?
The startup has a great team and working on a promising product. 
I have been offered a package with somewhat lower fixed component and somewhat higher ESOPs. Need insightful pointers here. TIA :)

Value of ESOPs in early stage startups?

The ESOP is a bit of a blind bet.  
  
 It's paper money that can get you a windfall if all goes to plan and execution, solution, pricing, market readiness amongst other things, all line up over the next few years.  
  
 I wouldn't take a pay cut in lieu of ESOPs.  Keep the real money real and the paper money as an outside bet.

Sales Manager

I am at a VC backed early stage startup. Have been offered Esops.l but have no clue on this.  Can somebody explain to me how can I make money from ESOP by answering these-

1) Do I have to buy them post vesting period? If yes, what amount do I need to pay? Also will there be text on this purchase itself?

2)) When the company buys back from me assuming my vesting was over and I could hold them on, what's the amount I will get? I am assuming it's (no of options * current share price) - (no of options * strike price issued to me). Is that correct? If yes, how is the current share price calculated for non listed company?

3) Now when the company buys these, what's the tax I have to pay? I am trying to understand if availing options and selling options are different and if both have taxes

4) What happens in IPO? Who buys from me? Where can I sell? What price do I sell at?

How exactly does an ESOP buyback work?

Management Consulting

Welcome to Personal Finance's Private Community

Generally speaking, is ESOPs fully vested in 4 or 5 years? 
I am aware of 4 years vesting period which is common everywhere. However, the startup where I work decided to introduce ESOPs with a cliff period of 1 year (which is standard) and the remaining shares to be vested will be done in the remaining 48 months. That’s five years altogether. Also, there’s a clause that on termination of employment, the shares should be exercised without which they will be revoked. 
The CXOs say that it’s a standard YC template. Am I being lied to? 
Would it be right to say that this is not an employee friendly ESOPs?

ESOPs vested over 4 or 5 years?

Software Developer

Hi Guys, what is the “Exercise event” for the ESOPs allotted by Indian startup’s?

Note: Exercise event means when the vested ESOPs can be allotted.

I have come across a couple startup’s which have a very sketchy Exercise event I.e 4 years after vesting of “all the allotted ESOPs”

So I’m trying to figure out how other startup’s are doing it in BLR/Metro cities in India.

ESOP Exercise Query

Welcome to Software Engineers's Private Community

Ever heard about people getting payout for their vested ESOPs when they exit the firm? Does this really happen?

ESOPs

I have 6 years experience. My current base/fixed is 60 LPA. (I also got a 5 lakh bonus and 5 lakh of my ESOPs vested this year making my total vested about 30 lakh. So the total comp is 70). 

I'm being offered a senior engineer position in an early stage startup (as part of the founding engineer team). They haven't given an offer yet.

Being early stage, the emphasis will most likely be on ESOPs. How do I evaluate this and set my expectations? (If I were to switch to a mature company, I believe the hikes usually are between 15-20%? How does this work for early stage startups?)

Salary expectation at early stage startup

One of my friends who works for a healthcare startup owns 30 shares at a premium of 75k per share. Company's share value went from 10k in last year to 75k this year due to fund raising event. Is it a good idea to vest now or wait for more returns? Further fund raising events ahead next year. What could be the value after 3 -5 yrs.

ESOP Suggestions

Business Analyst

Wanted to know and understand the reality behind the terms and conditions that new startups puts while promising ESOPs at the time of joining. 

Please share ur experience so that everyone gets aware.

ESOPs Terms and conditions?

Consultant

Truths about ESOP 101 

After working in multiple fast growth startup’s and having been part of multiple buybacks as well as being in the startup ecosystem for a decade I want to put to bear my pov about creating wealth through ESOP. 

Like any other randomised event, ESOP also follows Pareto principle which means a very small number of people within the company ever make sizable wealth that they elevate to the top 0.1% of the country. 

The Pareto also applies with companies; significantly small minority of companies in India have employee friendly policies which enables an employee to create wealth. 

Most startup’s have dark patterns within their esop policy which either locks you in for insufferable durations or forces you to pay exorbitant taxes to gain the right to exercise your esops when you are leaving the company. 

Survivorship bias plays a huge role in enabling the narrative that esop is a great wealth generating tool leading to rude awakening for an employee after they join a company. 

This doesn’t mean you can’t make wealth, it just means don’t get carried away by narratives and take preventable errors in your career. 

Always talk to multiple people in startup’s and ask relevant questions to understand esop policies better. 

Like everything else optimising only for esop for wealth creation will mostly not result in it.

Unmasking ESOP wealth!

Hello All,

I interviewed with a startup recently and some of their policies around esops was something I encountered for the first time in my career, so wanted the expert advice of the community on next steps.

Surprise one: ESOPs will be allocated post probation period of 3 months and vesting starts from there and not the date of joining, I was surprised on this but upon discussion with the company POC I was given a reason of the legal fees involved, which sounds fair but the vesting schedule is it employee favourable?

Surprise two: They shared an offer letter with only the fixed component and said ESOPs will be evaluated post completion of probation period basis performance. Upon further discussing in this I was informed that this is a standard format their VC(sequoia, a16z and elevation) have approved. Is this true because I asked around few of my friends and all of them said esops are an integral part of the startup compensation and all of my and their offer letters historically had esops mentioned along with their value. 

Wrt to point 2 an I asking too much or some practice has changed in the industary which I’m unaware about. Also esop value post probation evaluation, is it employee friendly as the employee is in non negotiable position, isn’t it ?

Should esops component  be mentioned in offer letter?

Currently working in a startup company 

Usually, I do my work in the given time, but due to some dependencies on me and after meetings on around 6-7PM some tasks are allocated to me that should be picked on the next day but due to "bhai plz Kar de" culture it is picked on the same which is not sometimes favorable and will cost around ending my day around 11 or 12 

Should this be embraced and how to tackle these things?

Should you embrace 'bhai - bhai' culture?

I used to take these requests and do them the same day out of good will. The ability to say no, comes with some experience. Give it 1 2 months you'll start saying no. It comes naturally and slowly

Eg. Seed -> Series A. What percentage of your CTC should be ESOPs across stages?

How much ESOPs do you ask for when moving to a company at a different stage?

Hi, I have an ESOPs related question. Appreciate any inputs. 

Consider a Series B startup providing an employee with 5000 shares. After 2 years, 2000 shares are vested and exercised by the employee. The stocks were never liquidated because the company didn't conduct buyback nor went IPO. 

Now, assume the company lays off that employee after 2 years,

- Can he still hold the vested and exercised 2000 shares? 
- If yes, then can he sell those stocks during future buyback even if he isn't an employee?
- Will the company provide accelerated vesting for the remaining 3000 shares during layoff? (not mentioned on offer letter)

Question on ESOPs

Analyst

I have some ESOPs($17k total) at my current company(startup, initial stage), vesting over 4 years with a one-year cliff (25% vested after my first year, monthly after). I have completed 1.5 years here.

I'm not sure if they're actually worth anything(no funding rounds since last 2-3 years, founder is saying he will raise in next 3-4 months), and I'm worried about the taxes when I eventually redeem them. Also I dont know about the redemption process. Could someone explain how this whole ESOP thing work, what the tax implications are, and where I can find more information?

what all should I ask to my manager/HR as we dont have any portal/guide where I can see all these information.
these are the questions I have rn
how to track how much is vested?
how do I redeem them?
can I not redeem them this year, will they still be available to me in next financial year?

Yubi ESOPs vesting & liquidity

Discover More

Product Managers on

by Matilda Hyrum

Stealth

Company is good but CTC pinches

Misc on

by Jordon Carmden

Stealth

Are ESOP worth it? Did it make anyone billionaire?

Indian Startups on

by Karilyn Gabriel

Yubi

Has anyone sold ESOP’s in secondary market? If yes, how did you find the buyer?

Business Roles on

by Aaron Taye

duroflex

ESOPs is offered by an early age startup. What are the things I does be aware about? or ask the founders to clarify with me.

Indian Startups on

by Isaiah Dean

Stealth

Value of ESOPs in early stage startups?

Indian Startups on

by Matilda Carmden

Stealth

How exactly does an ESOP buyback work?

Personal Finance on

by Jordon Carmden

Stealth

ESOPs vested over 4 or 5 years?

Indian Startups on

by Kendall Vernon

New Startup

ESOP Exercise Query

Software Engineers on

by Kalan Nadeen

Stealth

ESOPs

Business Roles on

by Isaiah Lee

Gojek

Salary expectation at early stage startup

Indian Startups on

by Kendall Lee

Piqyu

ESOP Suggestions

Indian Startups on

by Jordon Lee

Stealth

ESOPs Terms and conditions?

Indian Startups on

by Isaiah Carmden

Others

Unmasking ESOP wealth!

Software Engineers on

by Anise Dean

Atlassian

Should esops component be mentioned in offer letter?

Indian Startups on

by Kendall Olive

Student

Should you embrace 'bhai - bhai' culture?

Indian Startups on

by Isaiah Lee

Stealth

How much ESOPs do you ask for when moving to a company at a different stage?

Software Engineers on

by Jordon Dean

Early Stage Startup

Question on ESOPs

Software Engineers on

by Kalan Everett

Stealth

ESOPs are confusing