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Comment by ost-ing | Hacker News Reader

I consider virtual shares (in Germany) an unregulated scam. It’s a “nice to have” but should absolutely not be considered compensation, nor should renumeration be compromised for them. I don’t know a single person who has come out profiting. Dangling carrots.

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Same. Worked for years for a company that offered VSOPs. They never went public. Hopefully I negotiated a decent base salary. So, as long as they offer a decent base salary and on top of that they add vsops, I’m fine. The moment they offer your less base salary in exchange for more vsops, avoid them.

What are virtual shares exactly? Do you mean you are promised shares before the company goes public?

He means VSOPs.

They aren't shares, but options. So if the company's valuation skyrocket you hit the jackpot, but if the company growth stales you get nothing.

Of course, RSUs are better, but VSOP has a non-zero chance of making you money, it isn't 100% though.

It's not options either (that would be ESOPs), but actually a kind of bonus structure. If there is an exit event, as specified in the VSOP agreement, you get a bonus that should be the same as what real options would have been worth. They are taxed as normal income, but you do not have to pay tax when you receive them. In the past you would have to pay tax on real options when receiving them even though they'd most likely never pay out.

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