Start-up pay cheques, ESOPs are creating a new breed of angel investors

These high-earning start-up executives generally invest cheque sizes of Rs 2-5 lakh and are drawn to companies in the seed stage

The profile of the typical angel investor - someone who bets on early stage start-ups - is changing. It was always an HNI or founder or CXO of a start-up who had made money on big bang exits. Now, a new breed of angel investor is emerging - start-up employees who earn fat pay cheques or are rich from ESOP buybacks.   

MyStartupEquity, a technology platform that allows start-ups to manage their cap table and ESOPs, told Business Standard that in 2020 alone, it saw about 3,000 start-up employees benefit from up to Rs 85 crore of ESOP buybacks. 

The figures for