ASIA PACIFIC Chapter

Practitioner analysis of the tax treatment of repurchased employee stock options and the distinction between employment perquisites and capital gains.

RBL Bank allotted fresh equity shares to employees following exercises under its employee stock option plans.

Bangalore ITAT held that vested but unexercised ESOP rights were capital assets and that repurchase proceeds were taxable as long-term capital gains rather than salary perquisites.

Shareholder meeting included ratification of the Sudeep Pharma Employee Stock Option Scheme 2025.

Board agenda included approval of a proposed employee stock option plan alongside international expansion and a capital increase.

Shareholders were asked to approve a new Employee Stock Option Plan and Stock Appreciation Rights Plan, a current Indian example of combining option and SAR incentives.

Cap table due diligence checklist for Indian companies: what investors verify against your Register of Members, valuations, and FEMA trail.

Eicher Motors Limited approved the allotment of 14,967 equity shares with a face value of Re. 1 each on February 10, 2026, to employees exercising options under its ESOP 2006 and RSU Plan 2019. The board meeting, held from 10:00 a.m. to 4:15 p.m., included notifications to BSE and NSE as required under SEBI LODR Regulations. This action reflects the company’s commitment to employee equity participation and regulatory compliance.

Unacademy recently cut the ESOP exercise window for former employees from 10 years to just 30 days, sparking legal and ethical concerns over fairness, as employees may lose practical opportunity to realize wealth from their options. The change exposes ex-employees to immediate tax liabilities on potentially illiquid shares, while investors with preferred stock retain protections, leaving employees at the bottom of the payout hierarchy. This controversy highlights broader risks in startup ESOPs, emphasizing the importance of legal safeguards, careful evaluation of exercise terms, and awareness that paper value may not translate to real financial benefit.