Selling shares on a secondary market versus financing the exercise of your stock options Not all companies are listed on both platforms, and they require different minimum sale amounts.īefore we dive into the advantages and disadvantages of these different platforms – and who they may or may not be a good fit for – let’s take a quick look at the general differences between selling your shares on a secondary market versus financing the exercise of your stock options. While the design and functionality of Forge's platform is more advanced, in the end it's a matter of where you're able to get a deal. If you're considering Forge/SharesPost and EquityZen, just try both.Secfi is best for startup employees who think their company's value is going to continue to rise, want to exercise before an IPO and potentially save money on taxes, or who have only 90 days to exercise their options and need cash to do so.Forge Global (formerly SharesPost) and EquityZen are best for people who want cash now (and are willing to give up the potential upside of their options) or who think their company's value has peaked.We’ll also look at one company that offers exercise financing – Secfi – to help you determine which one is right for you.

In this post, we’re going to break down the differences between two secondary marketplaces: Forge Global (formerly SharesPost) and EquityZen. Finance the exercise of your stock optionsĭepending on your situation, one will definitely be better than the other.If your stock options have fully (or partially) vested and your company’s valuation has gone up, then you’re sitting on a pile of paper wealth.Īnd if you want to turn that paper wealth into actual wealth – but can’t afford to exercise your options on your own – you’ve got two alternatives:

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