Recurring Liquidity Builds Predictable Pricing
Charly Kevers, CFO at Carta, on progressive price discovery and investor relations
Recurring liquidity turns equity from a surprise windfall into something employees can plan around. The practical shift is not that auctions are simpler than tenders, it is that a known quarterly or annual window forces earlier decisions on exercising, taxes, diversification, and how much stock to sell. That predictability also reduces the all or nothing mindset that makes one off tenders feel urgent and often badly timed.
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In a one off tender, people often treat the event as their only chance to sell, which pushes rushed decisions and aggressive price expectations. In a recurring program, employees can sell a smaller slice now and keep meaningful upside for later windows.
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The data behind tender offers shows why this matters. Participation averages 37%, and more underpriced tenders see lower participation. Regular auctions are meant to build fresher price discovery, so employees are not forced to decide against a stale price anchored to the last round.
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For the company, the program doubles as investor relations training. Quarterly liquidity windows naturally pair with quarterly disclosures, investor updates, and data rooms, which helps management practice acting more like a public company before an IPO or direct listing.
Over time, the winners are likely to be companies that make secondary liquidity a routine operating process instead of a special event. That means more companies will pair cap table software, tax education, and recurring disclosure into a standard pre IPO playbook, using liquidity not just to help employees cash out, but to make the business easier to price, fund, and eventually list.