I know of a german financial product, I keep forgetting the name of it, it is a hybrid of a stock and a bond, but it isn't what is typically considered a conver

I know of a german financial product, I keep forgetting the name of it, it is a hybrid of a stock and a bond, but it isn't what is typically considered a convertible note. But basically it is granted at no cost to the employee, offers coupon payments, and matures at a point in time for the full cash value. In the US, this would be OTC product limiting its utility much like every other kind of financial product that the government is 'protecting us' from. But it wouldn't be impossible to offer to employees. For startups, the coupon payments would be relatively small, and refresher grants can still be done. If the startup goes bust, it goes bust. Provisions to make it callable can be implemented so in a bigger liquidity event valuing the company higher, employees can still get a lot of liquidity early, and it would likely be senior to common stock. Anyway, I'll try to get the name of it. It was a lot more counterintuitive than hybrid bond. edit: genussscheine , or participation certificate. Exempt from securities regulation in germany, but would be OTC in US.