You're missing the point. A typical options agreement today is not able to be exercised after you quit, even if you're vested. You might have 30 days. IPO is li

You're missing the point. A typical options agreement today is not able to be exercised after you quit, even if you're vested. You might have 30 days. IPO is likely a decade away or more, if there is one at all. Where is the liquidity going to come from in an industry that doesn't tend to make profits until well down the road? There are numerous tax pitfalls along the way were you can get absolutely ruined if you do it wrong. Exercising options can very easily become a non-trivial investment in actual cash. None of these details are particularly predictable when you start out. Ownership is ownership, but details matter. There is a long way between signing an options agreement and true ownership, liquid or otherwise. The longer that path, the less certain the payoff, and the less valuable the options.