Does Indonesia lack an ESOP culture?

Employee stock option plans are baffling so we look into them in detail [Open this email in your browser]( Does Indonesia lack an ESOP culture? --------------------------------------------------------------- Hello {NAME} Does this sound familiar? A startup employee cashed out their shares in the company and became an overnight millionaire. But while tech companies are known for including stock options in salary packages, not everyone gets the same fairytale ending. In reality, many founders and employees in Indonesia are still figuring out how employee stock option plans work. Find out more in [this article]( or scroll down for a short summary. But first, your quick bytes for today: 1️⃣ After taking a quick personal break, Ajey Gore, the former CTO of Gojek, is back — not at the ride-hailing startup but at Sequoia Capital India, with the title of [operating partner]( of technology. 2️⃣ “If only we can invest as much as we spend...” Good news: Grab heard you. The Southeast Asian giant’s fintech arm has launched its first micro-investment solution [AutoInvest]( along with other products, including consumer loans through a third-party platform. 3️⃣ In continuation of the “Microsoft is [maybe buying]( TikTok” story, we’re finally hearing from China, and the middle kingdom is [not happy about it]( saying that they have “plenty of ways to respond if the [US] administration carries out its planned smash and grab.” 4️⃣ Want to get on board Ant Group’s upcoming stock sale that could surpass oil giant Saudi Aramco’s US$29.4 billion IPO? Then you better [not be working]( with its rivals, as advised by senior executives at Alibaba, which owns a third of the Ant Group. 5️⃣ China’s ride-hailing giant DiDi Chuxing is preparing to expand to Russia, but experts are [saying]( it’s not going to be easy — Uber had tried and failed in 2017. 6️⃣ While Indian drivers have been seeing a decline in ride-hailing demand on Uber and Ola, they have also spotted [another opportunity]( Listing their vehicles on online travel aggregators such as Goibibo, MakeMyTrip, and Meru, because there is still a demand for intercity rides.  --------------------------------------------------------------- Would you like some stock options on top of your salary? To tech workers, cashing out their employee stock option plan (ESOP) sounds like a dream. But for many in Indonesia, they’re scratching their heads trying to understand [how ESOP works](. - Cash is still king: Most Indonesian tech workers still prefer the instant benefit of receiving higher salaries. In addition, the shares are basically invisible money — employees don’t see their value until there is an IPO or M&A. - However, a Tweet from a former employee of both Shopee and Lazada stated that “in other countries, most startup employees became rich because of ESOP, not salary.” - No exits needed: Some startups have realized the difficulties in cashing out for their ESOP holders — what with laws, stock exchanges, taxes, and more — so they created a buyback share program in order for employees to taste the fruits of their labor. Dive deeper: [Does Indonesia lack an ESOP culture?]( Spread the word: [Facebook]( | [Linkedin]( | [Twitter](  --------------------------------------------------------------- Do you use QuickBooks for accounting? Well, it’s about to get fancier. Intuit, the US-based parent of accounting platform QuickBooks, has acquired TradeGecko, a Singapore-based software-as-a-service company, for a reported [US$80 million](. Earlier this year, Intuit also acquired Credit Karma for a whopping US$7.1 billion. - Founded in 2012, TradeGecko develops online inventory and order management software for small businesses. The startup serves customers in more than 100 countries, processing over US$5 billion in gross merchandise volume. - It raised over US$20 million from TNB Aura, Aura Venture, 33 Capital, Perle Ventures, Wavemaker Partners, Openspace Ventures, Jungle Ventures, and more. - The acquisition will allow the commerce customers of QuickBooks Online to reduce operational complexities such as multichannel sales, multi-location inventory, and more. - More about QuickBooks: The software helps companies get paid, manage capital, and pay employees. It serves more than 7 million small businesses around the world. - ”Couldn’t pass it up” was how TradeGecko CEO and co-founder Cameron Priest described the deal. Earlier this year, the startup had [laid off]( 35 of its 125 employees. Read more: [Intuit to acquire Singapore’s TradeGecko for a reported $80m](  --------------------------------------------------------------- You might be using Spotify, but have you heard of Joox? Tencent launched Joox in January 2015 and within a year of its release, the app seized majority of the market share in Hong Kong and Malaysia. It came as a surprise to many as Spotify had already been in both markets since 2013, yet it was knocked off the top spot by a newcomer. We have unlocked [this article]( for you to read in full this week.  --------------------------------------------------------------- Misc Happening - [Tech in Asia Virtual Conference]( from October 19 to 22. In our biggest annual event, we gather founders, decision-makers, and venture capitalists in one place so that you can get all the information and make the connections you need. This year’s speakers include Rachmat Kaimuddin, CEO of Indonesian unicorn Bukalapak, and Jixun Foo, managing partner of GGV Capital. Hiring - [Product Manager]( at KeyReply (Singapore, Singapore) - [QA Analyst]( at Advotics (Jakarta, Indonesia) - [Branding Officer]( at Evermos (Bandung, Java, Indonesia)  --------------------------------------------------------------- Happy hump day! What better way to celebrate the midweek than to share this email with your friends? And if you have comments about our newsletter revamp, we’d love to hear them. Drop us a line [here](. To ensure that you don’t miss out on the biggest tech news and analysis, add [newsletter@techinasia.com]( to your address book, contacts, or safe sender list, or move us into your inbox! 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