Capdesk and Fidelity partner to enable transition of share plans from private to public

Capdesk and Fidelity are partnering to create Europe’s first ‘seed to post-IPO’ equity solution.

The equity management platform and investment management service will allow European countries to transition their employee share plans from private to public markets.

Analysis of over 360 companies that registered equity awards with Capdesk shows that between 2011 and 2021 company equity grew by 500 per cent.

In 2011, each of these companies granted an average of 15 awards. 

This grew to an average of 98 in 2021, 85 per cent of which were issued as options. 

Through the alliance, companies can move share plans from Capdesk’s equity management tool platform to Fidelity’s public market services.

The partnership will simplify the IPO process for businesses, reducing the time required by pre-IPO companies’ finance teams, and providing access to Fidelity’s advisors before listing.

This guidance will help companies ease the transition from a privately owned business to a listed entity.

Fidelity will also provide companies with workplace solutions, including pensions, healthcare and financial wellness.

“We recognise the growing importance of private markets and by partnering with Capdesk we can bring our investment management expertise to pre-IPO companies,” European regional lead at Fidelity Stock Plan Services Mitan Patel said. 

“Together, we will support customers with access to a full service as they progress to the next step of their journey from private to listed companies in the public marketplace.”

Capdesk has served more than 500 customers in the private market in Europe over the last five years.

Partnering with Fidelity will help it to serve clients from seed startups all the way through to companies on the bring of listing.

“As private capital surges and European companies wait ever-longer to IPO, the importance of private markets continues to rise. Capdesk and Fidelity’s alliance bridges the gap,” CEO and co-founder at Capdesk Christian Gabriel said.

“Employee financial wellbeing is at the heart of Capdesk’s mission, and this alliance ensures that as our customers transition to the public marketplace, the support their employees receive will only be enhanced by Fidelity,” he added.