Home service market place Urban Company announced on Sunday that it has concluded its fourth ESOP buyback program worth Rs 55 Cr. According to the official statement, the Bengaluru based company was valued at around $2.8 bn. The latest ESOP buyback has clearly resulted in good spike in valuation as the company was valued around $2.1 Bn during its Series F funding round during June this year.
Urban Company claimed that till date it has facilitated worth Rs 100 crore worth ESOP sales for its 940 current and ex-employees across the four programs. Among the 940, 550 employees had vested ESOPs who were allowed to participate in the latest ESOP sale, the company added.
Here is the timeline of Urban Company’s Buyback Program
- First ESOP buyback: June 2017
- Second ESOP buyback: December 2018
- Third ESOP buyback: August 2020
- Fourth ESOP buyback: December 2021
Notably, only last week Urban Company had expanded its ESOP pool size, allotting fresh equity shares to nearly 181 employees including current as well as ex-employees.
Additionally, Urban Company had recently collaborated with MyStartupEquity to launch an open source ESOP framework. MyStartupEquity is a product of the venture capital firm LetsVenture.
The year 2021 has turned out to be an active year on the front of ESOP liquidation, with many high-profile startups liquidating their ESOP plans and helping their employees get rich. These startups include Sharechat, Meesho, Cred, MPL, Licious, Udaan, Unacademy and many others.
Almost all startups in this list are unicorn and have raised huge funds from many marquee investors.
Traditionally, cash-strapped and capital starved startups have always greatly relied ESOPs for retaining talents and workforce. While ESOPs have its pros and cons but it has certaintiely helped small companies including startups in retaining talents as well as hiring good talent from the job market.