ESOPs get a bad rep in India

ESOPs get a bad rep in India.

Employee stock ownership plan or ESOP is a way in which employees get company stock as part of their compensation.

However, only few people in top positions get the “real ”benefit from ESOPs

But when ESOPs do materialize (which they sometimes do) it can give you monumental wealth – something that salaries can never match.

Here are few Indian startups that have offered ESOP buybacks in the past:

upGrad – $29.5 million in 2021
Udaan – $23 million in 2021
CRED – $19.3 million in 2021
ShareChat – $19 million in 2021
PhonePe – $18 million in 2021
Zerodha – $25 million in 2021
Swiggy – $50 million in 2023
Flipkart – $700 million in 2023
Meesho – $25 million in 2024

A new member to join this list is Rippling which just raised $200 Million in its series F funding.

It is offering $390 Million and $200 Million for investors and employees respectively.

This is surely going to inject liquidity into the Indian startup ecosystem.

What you need to note here is, early employees that took big bets are the ones who will get rewarded the most.

So the next time a young startup offers you a job offer & and you believe in the startup’s vision… do fight for more ESOP!