After Flipkart, Logistics Startup BlackBuck Rewards Employees With ESOP Repurchase Plan

BlackBuck, an Indian logistics startup has announced an ESOP repurchase plan,through which the opted employees have been offered an opportunity to liquidate a part of their stock options and avail 11X returns within the time period of one year. As per the official statement, the process has already been completed and the payments have been made to employees.

The timing of introduction of the ESOP repurchase plan clubbed with the opportunity to liquidate at the market price instead of discounted price makes it noteworthy.

Commenting on the impact of share buyback programme, Shilpi Pandey, Head – Human Resource at BlackBuck said “The plan was highly appreciated by employees where they saw an opportunity to unlock the latent value in ESOPs. It also demonstrated the organization’s intent to grow employees along with the organization. Our strong focus has always been on rewarding high performance and organizational contribution. We believe in creating long-term value for the employees through a variety of means and ESOP is a strategic tool in this direction.”

Anand Daniel, Partner at Accel added, “It is heartening to see an early stage startup wanting to extend additional benefits to its employees. BlackBuck is a team of high energy, smart and aspirational individuals who are making a meaningful contribution to the future of freight. It is an organization where employees are rewarded for their hard work and dedication; hence, cultivating a more engaged culture.”

In a bid to enhance and digitise the $140 Bn freight logistics sector in India, BlackBuck raised a total sum of $100 Mn from Tiger Global, Accel Partners, Flipkart, Apolleta Asia  Ltd. IFC and Sands Capital. This month itself BlackBuck raised $23.05 Mn (INR 50 Cr) in a venture debt funding from InnoVen Capital.

BlackBuck with its huge customer base including SMEs and major corporates such as Coco-Cola, ITC and HUL, is striving to accumulate more and more users within its presence across 300 locations nationwide.

BlackBuck with the help of its existing strong leadership from leading companies such as ITC, Mondelez, DHL, Wipro, McKinsey, Booz, Accenture along with few others, constantly strives to implement the most advanced technology and leverage fresh innovations in order to redefine logistics landscape in India and making it more reliable, efficient and transparent in nature. By prioritising its long-term strategy to scale-up operations, BlackBuck brings a large number of truckers and customers and encourages to execute transaction via its intelligent auction engines offered by smart mobile interfaces.

ESOPs are a preferred way for startups to retain talent and reward employees. BlackBuck is not alone this year to offer an ESOP repurchase plan. This month, the board of India’s most famous ecommerce startup Flipkart also approved a plan to repurchase employee stock options in a $100 Mn ESOP repurchase plan. The move could benefit close to 6,000 current and former employees at Flipkart.