When you’re working for a startup and receiving equity compensation, hopes can run high at IPO time. Often, pre-IPO employees enjoy sizable boosts in their wealth after their companies go public. When things don’t go as planned, it can be hard to let go of the hope ...
Grantor retained annuity trusts (GRATs) became popular after a 2000 ruling of the U.S. Tax Court in favor of the Walton family (Audrey J. Walton V. Commissioner of Internal Revenue), which upheld the family’s use of two such trusts to avoid the gift tax. GRATS are now ...
When you acquire stock options from your pre-IPO employer, your liquidity is severely limited. The most common ways executives and employees are able to sell their private company shares is through IPO, SPAC acquisition, or direct listing on a public exchange. However, ...
Many investors are nervous. Even when you understand that unpredictable ups and downs are a persistent feature of the market, volatility like this can make it seem like the sky is falling. Especially when markets are down and prices are rising, however, it’s critical ...
If you’re a startup founder, executive, or employee, your company’s IPO might be your first experience with managing wealth. While an influx of cash is certainly a blessing, it also brings new challenges into your life. What you do the year leading up to IPO day can ...
Peak ripeness can be elusive. When you buy avocados, it’s often for a specific purpose. Maybe you’re planning to have fajitas for dinner this week or make guacamole for a party. If you start worrying about whether the avocados are at the peak of their ripeness, ...
If you’re working at a pre-IPO company, tremendous financial opportunities may be on your horizon. You may have big dreams about what you can do with your anticipated windfall, but without clear financial goals and proper structures in place to reach them, those dreams ...
Your company’s public offering can bring tremendous financial opportunities. Making the most of them requires careful planning. However, as an employee, blackout periods and concerns about insider trading hang over your decisions about when to buy or sell your company ...
If your company is exploring options for going public, whether via an IPO or SPAC merger, making the most of the opportunity requires specialized knowledge and careful planning. A fiduciary financial advisor with expertise in the IPO process is a key ally during this ...
As your company prepares to go public, it’s important to get the very best financial advice to make the most of this rare opportunity. The right experienced, trustworthy financial professional can keep you aware of important deadlines, tax rules, and other details that ...
To ensure that you remain on track to meet your retirement goals, you must regularly review the investments in your 401(k) or other retirement account. Regular review enables you to make necessary adjustments to your portfolio as your means, needs, goals, and the value ...
If your employer offers an employee stock purchase plan (ESPP), it’s important to understand how it works and how owning stock in your company can best support your long-term financial goals. Before you decide whether to participate and, if so, how much to invest in ...
Your company has announced its plans for IPO. Whether your company has just filed its S-1 or you just received your C round of funding, this is an exciting time full of hard work and the prospect of rich reward. While the big day might still be a while off, you have no ...
What is an 83(b) election? When you file an 83(b) election, you’re taking advantage of section 83(b) of the Internal Revenue Code (IRC). This provision allows early investors in a company, including employees receiving equity compensation, to calculate and pay tax on ...
Stock options are a form of compensation that many startups and other companies offer their employees and other key players in the company. A stock option is a contract in which the company issuing the stock grants the right to purchase a certain number of shares at a ...
What is an 83(b) election? An 83(b) election is a way to potentially limit your tax liability for gains on shares of company stock. It allows you to pay taxes on shares before they vest, when their value may be still relatively low. You may choose to file an 83(b) ...
Restricted stock awards (RSAs) and restricted stock units (RSUs) are two types of incentive programs that are common in startup companies. While similar, there are some key differences in how these benefits are delivered and taxed. Both require careful tax and ...
Your company is going public. Whether that happens via a SPAC or the traditional IPO process, you have several important decisions to make in the near future. There are some key differences between the two processes, however, that can affect how you manage your stock ...
If you have pre-IPO shares of your company’s stock, you may be wondering when you’ll be able to cash in. Here are the basics you should know about the IPO lockup period and the importance of planning ahead for share sales. What is an IPO lockup period? A lockup period ...
To stay on track to meet your retirement goals, it’s important to make a regular habit of reviewing your 401(k) portfolio. This helps ensure that you’re putting enough aside and that you have the best mix of investments to meet your financial objectives. If you haven’t ...
Congratulations, your company has finally gone public! At this essential turning point in your financial journey, it’s important to reassess your financial goals and priorities through the lens of your new circumstances. Seeking advice from experienced and trusted ...
A grantor retained annuity trust (GRAT) can allow you to avoid large amounts of gift or estate tax while transferring high-value investments to the next generation. Changing Estate Tax Law While most families don’t have to worry about estate taxes, they can put a ...
As we enter the second half of 2020, many investors have turned to alternative assets to protect them from the economic downturn. No one likes to lose money, and Warren Buffet (Founder of Berkshire Hathaway) said, “The goal is simply to survive the disaster with the ...
While COVID-19 is going to be here with us for some time, the economic recovery seems to be underway. Of course, there are no guarantees, and should deaths spike suddenly the bottom could be upcoming rather than in the rearview mirror. Whether we’re at the bottom or ...
We’ve all been impacted by COVID-19. We have learned a lot about the virus, ourselves, and our economy over the last couple of months, but there is still a lot that remains unknown. While we can be certain that as our society opens back up there will be an increase in ...
What to do with your stock options when the market is in the preverbal toilet? Nobody likes stock market declines. From 401ks to 529s, a bear market is hazardous to one’s wealth. However, there are five things that you can do to set yourself up for success when the ...
In the nascent days of a startup, stock options are the norm. Early employees can expect access to incentive stock options (ISOs), and non-qualified stock options (NSOs), which are leveraged type options that can make someone very wealthy, very quickly. But as a ...
In Part I of “The Importance of 83(b),” we conducted a survey of the 83(b) election and discussed in what context the election made sense when it came to restricted stock awards (RSAs). In Part II, we looked at examples of 83(b) elections for RSAs. Now, in Part III, ...
As the number of startups hit new heights in the Silicon Valley and various companies are utilizing equity to help attract, retain, and motivate skilled workers, the term “incentive stock option” is becoming more common in employment contracts. Although many will use ...
In Part I of “The Importance of 83(b),” we shared a survey of the 83(b) election, and discussed in what context the election made sense when it came to restricted stock awards (RSAs). In this post, we are going to go through some examples of what can be accomplished ...
If you work for a late stage startup, you are most likely suffering from both mental and physical fatigue. You’ve worked for many years with the expectation of a big payout from your stock options, but the company doesn’t seem in any rush to go public. “Unicorns” ...
As we sign on the dotted line and say yes to a job offer, many of us do not completely comprehend the full effect of what we are signing. Aside from income tax on the base salary, we often overlook the tax consequences caused by the other big variable—stock ...
Most people have heard of the famous Internal Revenue Code sections 401(k), 403(b), 121, and 1031, yet there are a few that tend to slip under the radar for most taxpayers. One code section that has a meaningful impact on a taxpayer’s return is 83(b). What is 83(b)? At ...