Pocket FM completes its first ESOP buyback worth $8.3 Mn

Audio series platform Pocket FM announced that the company has completed its first ESOP buyback worth $8.3 million. The buyback of stock comes soon after $103 million Series D funding announced by the Bengaluru-based company.

Former and existing employees, holding vested stocks in the company, participated in this process, the company said in a press release.

The company was valued at $750 million during the latest fundraise and has been growing at a high speed. According to PocketFM, it surpassed $150 million (Rs 1,250 crore) ARR, and is growing at 57% QoQ. In 2023, it processed over 20 million transactions and claimed that its US revenue crossed $100 million in average revenue run rate (ARR) during the last calendar year.

The buyback has come at a time when Pocket FM is reportedly in late-stage conversation to raise a new round which would catapult it to the unicorn club.

Pocket FM is the fourth growth stage company that has announced stock buyback in 2024. Recently, e-commerce company Meesho rolled out its largest ESOP buyback worth $25 million for 1,700 employees (past and current). Community management app MyGate and edtech company Classplus also announced their employee stock buyback program earlier this year.

As per data compiled by TheKredible, the total EOSP buyback/payout/liquidity stood at nearly $802 million in 2023. In 2021 and 2022, the buyback amount was recorded at $440 and $200 million respectively.

Pocket FM claims 2,000 exclusive audio series and more than 400,000 episodes across genres and languages. While the company’s real financial picture could be decoded when it discloses full-fledged FY24 results, Pocket FM’s revenue zoomed 8X to Rs 148.7 crore in the fiscal year ending March 2023. The firm also improved unit economics and reduced its losses by about three-fourths in the last fiscal year.