eShares, which touts itself as the “#1 Cap Table Management Platform”(1), is changing the landscape of issuing, buying and selling equity stakes in private companies.
Highlighted in an article published on CNBC late last week, “ … eShares lets company founders issue share certificates to angel and venture investors, employees, and others who qualify for stock options. Through a centralized dashboard, issuers can keep track of who owns what, the timing and pricing of shares issued and whether or not anyone current equity stakeholders are willing to sell their shares right now.”
Sounds like what’s been available for public companies on platforms like E-Trade, TDameritrade and Scottrade for years, right? These online trading sites have made buying and selling stocks in public companies a breeze. Now, eShares aims to do the same for private companies, which could help such companies stay private for longer, while enjoying the perks of allowing outsiders to purchase equity. At the time of the CNBC article, eShares had around 6,000 customers (2), but I’d expect that to skyrocket as the company gets more exposure, tightens up its dashboard and continues to increase accessibility into equity stakes of private companies.
Keep an eye on eShares and similar companies.
Read the full CNBC article here.