I never said how many years ago I joined...by a "few years" I meant 5. I said I sold some shares via a tender offer, which are company sponsored, and last year

I never said how many years ago I joined...by a "few years" I meant 5. I said I sold some shares via a tender offer, which are company sponsored, and last year was the first time I was offered that opportunity. Companies can't block you from selling on a secondary market unless you've specifically agreed to that as part of the initial grant. It's far more common that they have the "right of first refusal" clause which means they get the chance to buy back your shares before selling to a third party. I don't think there's anything particularly special about my situation other than I was fortunate to join a now unicorn early on.