Razorpay gives Esops of Rs 1 lakh each to all employees

BENGALURU: Fintech unicorn Razorpay on Monday said it is extending employee stock options (ESOP) worth Rs 1 lakh to each of its over 3,000 staffers.
“This marks the first time Razorpay has extended ESOPs of this magnitude, offering each current employee shares worth Rs 1 lakh. This initiative reflects our deep-rooted commitment to an employee-first ethos, honouring the unwavering dedication and hard work of our team,” a statement from the company said.
The company declined to share details of how much previous Esop grant exercises were worth, saying that in the previous rounds only select employees based on performance were chosen.
Among other new-age companies that have granted Esops to employees in the recent past are logistics services provider Delhivery, food delivery firm Zomato, payments services provider Paytm and travel tech firm Ixigo.
Last month, Delhivery approved the grant of 4.9 lakh stock options. In the same month, Paytm granted 4.05 lakh equity shares, and Ixigo granted 17.6 lakh options. The month before, Zomato issued about 12 million stock options.
Razorpay’s previous Esop grantees have benefited on account of several rounds of buybacks. The company initiated its first Esop buyback in 2018, which allowed 140 employees to liquidate their vested shares. The second and third Esop buybacks in 2019 and 2021 benefited 400 and 750 employees respectively. The fourth buyback, in 2022, valued at $75 million, benefited 650 employees (including former employees).
Until now, the company had awarded Esops to 1,940 employees.
With an annualized total payment volume (TPV) of $180 billion, Razorpay currently powers payments for 80 of India’s 100 unicorns.