Recurring Partial Liquidity Programs

Private companies now need liquidity programs because equity no longer competes on promise alone, it has to compete on usability. A Meta recruit can sell stock whenever they want, while a startup hire often sits on paper wealth for years. That gap changes recruiting math. Controlled secondaries let private companies turn RSUs and options into partial cash without forcing a full exit, which keeps equity credible as compensation and keeps employees aligned after selling only a slice.

• The practical model is not full cash out, it is recurring partial liquidity. In prior analysis, a company allowing employees to sell 10% to 20% of holdings each year could make startup pay packages look much closer to public company comp, while employees still keep most of their upside.
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• Issuer approval is the key gate. The market moved from companies mostly blocking secondaries to mostly supporting them, because if a company offers no approved path, employees and investors often look for workarounds like forwards, which are messier and less aligned with the company.
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• Different products solve different parts of the problem. EquityZen and Forge help smaller employee blocks find buyers, often through pooled vehicles, while tender platforms like Nasdaq Private Market and Carta are better for company run events with tighter control over price, timing, and who gets in.
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The market is heading toward a blended model where the best late stage companies run occasional tenders for big resets and also allow limited ongoing secondaries between them. That combination gives employees a steady release valve, gives issuers control, and makes private stock feel closer to liquid public equity without giving up the benefits of staying private.