Grab Vietnam ex-staffers ‘disappointed’ over offer to give up shares

Current and former employees are expecting a windfall from the much-anticipated initial public offering of Grab, which is likely to take place next month. Many ex-staffers from Vietnam, however, received a surprising offer.

The company has asked ex-employees in the country to give up their shares in exchange for a payout pegged to Grab’s current valuation. The policy affected about 60 to 80 people who were awarded shares during their employment at Grab Vietnam, a source estimates.

In April, Grab announced that it would go public in the US through a SPAC deal with Altimeter Growth Corp. /Photo credit: 123rf

Several former employees of Grab Vietnam told Tech in Asia that they were unhappy over the payout amount, as some had hoped for a bigger profit after the listing – though this isn’t a certainty.

In a statement sent to Tech in Asia, Grab said that the majority of those who were given the offer have accepted and “expressed their continued support” for the company. Grab also believes that the deal is the “fairest arrangement to ensure compliance with Vietnam’s law while being honorable to” its employees.

Legal complication

According to firsthand sources, affected ex-employees were called to the office last week and asked to give up their Grab shares.

The company explained to them that their original shares could be “technically worthless” in the future because they were not issued by Grab Holdings Limited, the entity that will be trading on Nasdaq as early as next month.

In April, the Singapore-headquartered firm announced that it would go public in the US through a deal with special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Altimeter Growth Corp. (AGC), which could value Grab at nearly US$40 billion. The combined company expects to trade on the Nasdaq under the symbol GRAB.

See also: 6 surprises from the reveal of Grab’s jealously guarded financials

The regional super app is spearheading the IPO party for Southeast Asia, where the digital economy is expected to exceed US$360 billion in 2025, according to Google, Temasek, and Bain’s e-Conomy SEA Report 2021.

In Vietnam, however, regulations present an obstacle to distributing the rewards of the boom to tech workers.

According to the former staffers, Grab said that converting their original shares to Grab Holdings Limited would violate Vietnam’s regulations, which only allows current Vietnamese employees to own shares of the foreign companies that employ them.

It’s extremely unfair to the ex-staff who had devoted themselves to Grab.

Tech in Asia understands that Grab was referring to Circular 10, a decree issued by the State Bank of Vietnam in 2016.

Disappointment

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