Fables of ESOPs: March sees ESOP Buyback by Souled Store

Written By:
Srikanth Prabhu
Calendar
April 11, 2023

March saw ESOP activity form a handful of companies. We have liquidity programs announced by 3 companies – Souled Store, Betterhalf.ai and Sirona. While there were ESOP pool announcements by Harvest Farmer Network (HFN), Coforge, Khiladi Adda and Wipro among others. Let’s do a quick round-up.

ESOP Liquidity Programs

Sirona Hygiene Announces ESOP Buyback worth 5 Cr

Feminine hygiene startup Sirona Hygiene which is majorly held by The Good Glamm Group post their INR 100CR investment last year, introduced an ESOP Liquidity program worth INR 5 Cr for its employees. The program will run in two phases, first covering the earlier employees and later for the new employees.

Betterhalf.ai announce their second ESOP Buyback post their Series A round

Betterhalf.ai which recently announced their Series A funding of $8.5 million by Finsight Ventures also announced their second ESOP liquidity program. Their first ESOP program was announced last year post their pre-A round funding which was a record of sorts given their ability to offer liquidity opportunity to employees at a relatively early stage of company’s growth.

Souled Store announce ESOP Buyback program post their $16.4 million Series C round

Souled Store, a lifestyle and fan merchandise startup, who announced their $16.4 million Series C funding recently also announced an undisclosed ESOP buyback program. The unique aspect of the buyback program is that the company is offering to buyback 100% of vested options and they have signalled that they intend to make it a ‘habit’, in a way indicating continuous opportunities for employees to liquidate and seek value from their ESOPs.

Other ESOP Related News

Harvest Farmer Network (HFN), Chandigarh based Agri-Tech Startup announce ESOPs worth12 Crore.

Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs)worth Rs 12 crore have been made available to all Harvesting Farmer Network(HFN) employees, regardless of their designation or position in the organization's hierarchy. Around 35 employees will be eligible for this program.

All qualified workers will have access to the ESOPs, and the quantity of shares awarded will depend on each employee's duration, performance, and contribution to the expansion of the business.

Khiladi Adda Rolls out its maiden ESOP Plan

Khiladi Adda, an online gaming platform has announced setting up of a 10% pool for its Employee Stock Option Plan (ESOP) program. The ESOP program will be managed by a separate ESOP trust.

Recognizing the commitment of its early employees, Khiladi Adda will roll out the first set of ESOP grants to eleven employees who have been with the company for atleast 2years and have contributed to the growth of the company.

Wipro Allotted 1.39 Lakh new Equity Shares

Wipro has allotted 1,39,579 equity shares under ADS Restricted Stock Unit Plan 2004 on 21 March 2023 pursuant to exercise of ESOPs

Coforge, a Digital IT Solutions Consulting firm allots 10.8k new shares as ESOPs

Coforge has allotted 10,834 equity shares on 19 March2023 under ESOP. The paid-up share capital of the company has gone up to6,10,87,080 at face value of 10Rs each.

 

ESOP: To Trust or Not?

Team Qapita spoke with Umashankar Acharya, Partner -Consulting from ESOP Direct to decode all aspects regarding ESOP Trusts. Right from when companies should consider setting up a trust, what does it entail and how should one go about setting up one. Catch the LinkedIn Live recording here.

 

ESOP Valuations & Disclosures – It’s that time of the year!

As the audit season starts, it also is a time when companies need to comply by the financial guidelines as per accounting standards and defend their valuations. There are several valuation and disclosure formalities that companies need to engage in as part of their annual audit and year-end formalities.

Our solution can help you with the entire spectrum of valuation and reporting obligations of your company:

  • Share valuation –obtaining Fair Market Value of ordinary shares of your company (including 409Athat is required if you have employees in the United States)
  • Option, RSU, RSA and other Equity Instruments Valuation – determining Fair Value of your equity awards required for ongoing expense amortisation and IFRS disclosures.
  • Monthly, quarterly, and year-end reporting and disclosures.

Read the full article here and schedule a call with our expert right away.

 

Asia’s Most Comprehensive ESOP Report is here!

We are excited to announce the release of our latest survey report on Equity Compensation Trends in India and South East Asia. This report is the result of our extensive research and analysis of the current trends and practices in equity compensation across various industries.

Equity compensation has always been a critical tool for attracting, retaining, and motivating employees. With the rapidly evolving business landscape and the changing workforce dynamics, it is more important than ever for companies to stay up-to-date with the latest trends and best practices in equity compensation.

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We believe this report will be a valuable resource for companies looking to optimize their equity compensation strategies and stay ahead of the curve.

Download Summary here!

Srikanth Prabhu

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