At the very least 5%/year compound discounting for the illiquidity premium, as well as a steep 20-30%+ discount for uncertainty for actual exit Yes - VCs use a

At the very least 5%/year compound discounting for the illiquidity premium, as well as a steep 20-30%+ discount for uncertainty for actual exit Yes - VCs use a 30-50% discounting rate on investments during the growth phase, so that's what employees should use. (Whether this is illiquidity or uncertainty is left for the holder) IMHO - for the companies you've listed, they can actually be higher risk, as the employees will likely have much higher strike prices. If you're already there, you can have a better idea of if you're in the money. ("Mine strike at 20 cents, the last funding round was at a dollar, put in a discount and let's call it 50 cents, leaving me 30 in the money") If you're a later employee, you're more likely to wind up out of the money, and less likely to get a significant stake.