HealthifyMe introduces equity buyback programme for current, former workers

Health and fitness platform HealthifyMe on Monday announced an equity buyback programme worth Rs 90 crore ($12 million) to almost 100 current and former team members.    

“As part of our employee retention programme, we are excited to provide liquidity to our teammates who have worked tirelessly through the years shaping our vision to reality. I am sure we will continue to do more of this in years to come as well,” Tushar Vashisht, CEO and co-founder said in a statement.   

The buyback follows the Series C round in the company led by LeapFrog and Khosla Ventures.    

Many early-stage investors like TVS Capital Funds MD Gopal Srinivasan and Micromax would receive up to 15 times return on their investments.  

HealthifyMe was founded in 2012 by Vashsisht and Sachin Shenoy. It is a mobile health and fitness app that combines technology with human services.    

The company focuses on weight loss as an end goal with a target group of people in their thirties or forties. HealthifyMe has a physical presence in Bengaluru, Kuala Lumpur, and Singapore.   

It claims to have 25 million downloads in 300 plus cities with over 1,500 coaches. The company is set to hit $50 million in annual recurring revenue within the next six months, it said in a statement.   

The firm said 25% of its revenue comes from outside India.   

The year 2021 has seen employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) liquidity events for many companies like Locus, Moglix, Flipkart, upGrad, Whatfix, and Unacademy. 

Tech and internet firms typically offer ESOPs to attract and retain talent. In some cases, it is estimated that ESOPs make up as much as 60-70% of the compensation package for top-level executives.