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> good growth potential and those options work out in your favor, which is actually typically the case Typically the case? I'll wager that greater than 70% of
by ta9090 10y ago
> good growth potential and those options work out in your favor, which is actually typically the case
Typically the case? I'll wager that greater than 70% of startup employee options never pay out.
- cm3 10y agoOr have them taken back if they leave or get fired.
- deelowe 10y agoIf you're going to limit the discussion to startups (I did not), then we need to have a different discussion. I imagine all Facebook employees with an employee number less than #1000 are quite happy with their options. As with all things investing related, risk is proportional to reward. So, those 70% that aren't paying off are offsetting the 30% that are paying off massively. If you don't want to take this risk, choose a different industry. Traditional corporations issue options all the time that pay dividends that consistently net positive value. You may only get a few hundred/thousand per year, but you can depend (somewhat) on the income they generate.
- LoSboccacc 10y agoeven less than that. if 1 in 10 startups survives the first year and 1 in 100 goes to ipo, stock options are just a trick to underpay engineers. now, if one really is a 'key player' and a 'cornerstone', then equity is where the game's at.
- icedchai 10y agoYou're pretty optimistic. I was going to guess more like 90% never pay out. And for a good rest of the other 10%, you'd have been better off investing in something else.