Unacademy announces Rs 50 Cr ESOP buyback

Edtech company Unacademy has initiated a Rs 50 crore ESOP buyback programme to offer liquidity to its employees, according to the company’s co-founder, Gaurav Munjal.

Announcing the development on X, Munjal said that eight employees are expected to make over Rs 1 crore each through the buyback, while 17 employees will receive more than Rs 50 lakh, and 38 employees are likely to earn over Rs 10 lakh.

“Grateful to the board for carving out a cash pool for the employees, even though the valuation is significantly lower than our last fundraise,” Munjal said, adding that the company will reach out to eligible employees over the next few weeks to participate in the programme.

Munjal had recently clarified the company’s stance on ESOP exercise terms and valuation. Unacademy introduced a one-time 30-day window for former employees to exercise their vested stock options, while cautioning that the current valuation is lower than previous funding rounds and that preference shareholders have priority over equity holders.

Unacademy is undergoing a strategic reset as the edtech sector faces headwinds after the post-pandemic boom. Recently, the company announced plans to shift from company-run offline learning centres to a franchise-based model to cut costs and improve unit economics.

The company has also explored consolidation opportunities. However, recent talks between Unacademy and upGrad over a potential acquisition were called off after the two sides failed to agree on valuation terms.