Use Case · For the CHRO
Employees are pushing for raises. The cash compensation budget can't carry them. Cashless Participation® delivers materially more equity value through the plans you already run, without growing the cash compensation budget.
The Problem
Employees are pushing for raises and the cash compensation budget can't carry them. Meanwhile, the equity programs already in place are designed to deliver real economic value - but most employees only ever capture a fraction of what those plans were built to provide.
Inflation, cost-of-living pressure, and competitive comp markets have pushed wage expectations beyond what most cash compensation budgets can absorb. The cash lever is tapped.
Traditional ESPPs require paycheck deductions. Most employees can't afford to defer 10-15% of take-home pay for six months, so they enroll at low rates or skip the plan entirely - capturing a slice of the benefit the plan was built to deliver.
ESPPs are designed to deliver up to 15% in discount value plus the upside on the underlying stock. But most employees never participate at the full eligible rate, so the gap between the value the plan was built to deliver and what employees actually capture widens with every cycle.
The Mechanism
Your existing ESPP already grants meaningful economic value. Traditional payroll-deduction structures cap how much of that value employees can actually capture - so most participate below the plan's eligibility cap, or skip it entirely. Cashless Participation® funds participation at full rate so employees capture the entire benefit the plan was designed to deliver.
Traditional ESPP
Cashless Participation®
The Outcome
Materially more equity value in employee hands - delivered through the plans you already run, without adding a dollar to the cash compensation budget.
Illustrative example
For a typical $100K employee participating in a 15% ESPP.
Today
With Carver Edison
Methodology: The IRS Section 423 limit caps an ESPP at $25,000 of stock FMV per year. At a 15% discount that's a $21,250 contribution to buy $25,000 of stock — a $3,750 discount, or a 17.6% gain on contribution. Cashless Participation funds the participant up to that IRS maximum without any payroll deduction, while a typical 8% paycheck contribution caps out at $8,000 / $9,412 FMV / $1,412 discount. Same plan, same 15% discount — just no take-home pay impact.
Related Outcomes
Decrease stock-based compensation by as much as 85% on the same grants.
See use case → 02.Dramatically reduce dilution on your share pool by sourcing shares from the open market.
See use case → 03.Extend equity participation across your broader workforce with no impact on P&L.
See use case →Book a 30-minute walkthrough with our team. We'll model the projected per-participant earnings lift against your actual contribution caps and grant structure. Employees see value at first purchase or vest, with engagement uplift typically within a quarter.