At Secfi we 100% agree. Employees should: (a) have the knowledge to fairly assess their equity, and (b) have the option to cash out before an exit. We're working hard to fix this information asymmetry, and try to offer a way out of the equity-golden-handcuffs with a win-win structure to as many people as possible. Our financing product is not cheap, but it's a great option for a lot of startup employees that aren't able to sell their stock today. Sadly, that's still the reality at the moment, and as other commenters remarked it's likely to stay that way because individual employees are at such a negotiation disadvantage.

With all that said, there's still heaps to be done to fix this issue and we'd love to get feedback from the community on some of our material:

1. Stock option starter guide: https://www.secfi.com/academy/stock-option-guide

2. Exercise guide: https://www.secfi.com/academy/exercise-guide

3. Exercise tax calculator: https://www.secfi.com/products/exercise-tax-calculator