Stock Option and IPO Planning
Darrow Wealth Management regularly works with employees who have incentive stock options or nonqualified stock options. Through our ongoing advisory relationship, we can help you make a plan to exercise and diversify stock. If your employer is going public, merging, or getting bought out, work with an advisor experienced with strategic stock option planning and the tax implications.
If you’re expecting sudden wealth from a liquidity event or IPO, we’ll work to help you develop a strategy to make the most of the windfall.
Financial Advisor for Employee Stock Options
Especially for founders and early employees, stock options can create a major liquidity event that transforms your financial life. To maximize the opportunity, it’s critical to get the right team of advisors in place before making irreversible decisions with your shares.
Our team of stock option advisors can work to help you:
- Plan for an IPO or acquisition
- Understand the differences in equity compensation at a private company vs a public one, and planning opportunities therein
- Discuss your goals to identify how to best utilize stock options in your financial plan or retirement plan
- Develop an exercise strategy with an analysis to consider tax implications (like the alternative minimum tax) and risks of holding a concentrated stock position
- Develop a liquidation strategy, factoring in risk, cash needs, and taxes and considering different grants
- Coordinate the approach with your tax advisor and estate planning attorney
- Decide on a strategy to best use the proceeds, including funding multiple goals and investment management services to help you diversify sudden wealth
- Understand how vested and unvested stock options may be treated if you leave the company or retire
- Explore cashless or sell-to-cover exercises of stock options
- Implement a multi-year diversification strategy through an ongoing wealth management advisory relationship
- Consider ways to further your charitable or legacy goals
