LocoNav, a fleet-tech startup, on Thursday said it has earmarked USD 3 million (about Rs 22.3 crore) for its maiden first-ever ESOP and equity buyback scheme. The development comes a month after LocoNav raised USD 37 million in series B funding from Quiet Capital, Anthemis Group, Sequoia Capital India, Foundamental and others.
“The company aims to recognise the contribution of employees and early investors in enabling its growth in the last 5 years along with driving wealth creation with returns as high as 150x on their investment with this buyback scheme,” a statement said. Over 50 existing and former employees will be eligible to participate in this ESOP round and liquidate part of their vested ESOPs, it added.
“Our exponential growth in the past few years represents the relentless contribution of our employees and the trust our early investors placed in us,” LocoNav co-founder Shridhar Gupta said. LocoNav co-founder added that this ESOP and equity buyback scheme is the company’s way of showing gratitude, empowering them with wealth creation, and enabling collective ownership as the business scales across markets.
The company said the funds raised will add to LocoNav’s vision of democratising fleet-tech across emerging and high-growth markets along with enabling strategic acquisitions. Its AI-based technology enhances fleet performance with customised recommendations that enables better decision-making including operational efficiencies, cost-savings, and driver and vehicle safety.
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