Flipkart announces new ESOP liquidity worth $50 Mn

Flipkart has announced a fresh ESOP (Employee Stock Option Plan) liquidity opportunity for its employees, according to an internal note from the company’s chief executive officer Kalyan Krishnamurthy.

As per the note, eligible employees will be allowed to liquidate up to 5% of their vested ESOPs as of July 5, 2025, at a buyback price of $174.32 per option. Payouts will be made in August 2025 under the Flipkart Stock Option Plan 2012.

An ET report estimates the size of the ESOP buyback at $50 million, with 7,000 to 7,500 employees expected to benefit from the liquidity program. Flipkart is currently valued at around $36 billion.

Krishnamurthy also added that if key performance goals are met by the end of 2025, another 5% liquidity window could open in early 2026.

A Flipkart spokesperson confirmed the development to Entrackr.

This announcement follows Flipkart’s record $700 million payout to employees in 2023, one of the largest ESOP buyback events in Indian startup history.

Media reports indicate the firm plans to launch its IPO with a valuation of $60-$70 billion. The company’s board has already approved the process to shift its holding structure from Singapore to India.

In 2025, a clutch of startups including Darwinbox, Rapido, Univest, Deserve, and Even Healthcare have implemented ESOP buyback, liquidity, and payout programs worth around $67 million. In 2024, more than 20 startups implemented $200 million. According to startup data intelligence platform TheKredible, the ESOP buyback or liquidity amount stood at $802 million in 2023, $440 million in 2021, and $200 million in 2022.