Dave Thornton

AI Summary

→ WHAT IT COVERS Vested provides capital to startup employees to exercise expiring stock options in exchange for equity exposure, creating diversified venture portfolios with 200+ positions across top-tier private companies using proprietary employee behavior data. → KEY INSIGHTS - **Stock Option Abandonment:** Approximately 70% of startup employees forfeit vested stock options worth hundreds of billions because they lack cash to exercise within the 90-day post-termination window, creating systematic opportunity for third-party capital providers. - **Purchase Discount Strategy:** Vested acquires shares at third-party board-approved fair market value which includes a discount for lack of marketability, typically taking 25-50% of employee shares depending on strike price delta to fund the exercise. - **Proprietary Selection Model:** The platform uses employee behavioral signals like early exercise patterns, share counter-offers, and voluntary forfeiture decisions combined with quota-carrying sales rep data to predict company performance and select top 20% of venture-backed firms. - **Dual Liquidity Paths:** Portfolio exits occur through traditional corporate events like IPOs and acquisitions plus individual-level liquidity when employees access company-sponsored tenders or secondary markets, with acquisitions representing 75% of exits and individual sales 25%. → NOTABLE MOMENT Vested discovered that startup employees who use their equity tracking tool called Vestimate abandon stock options at 55% rates compared to 70% for non-users, demonstrating how basic education dramatically reduces wealth-destroying forfeiture behavior. 💼 SPONSORS [{"name": "Alpha Architect", "url": "Not specified"}, {"name": "The Idea Farm", "url": "https://theideafarm.com"}] 🏷️ Venture Capital Access, Stock Option Exercise, Private Market Investing, Employee Equity