NewView and Carta target startup liquidity
The firms aim to simplify tender offers for employees holding equity in late-stage private companies.
By Lina Lewis ·
NewView and Carta have formed a partnership designed to streamline the process through which startup employees sell shares. The collaboration combines NewView's expertise in structuring secondary deals with Carta's equity management platform. The primary goal is to facilitate tender offers, allowing staff members to sell a portion of their stock at a fixed price to an approved buyer before a company goes public or is acquired.
Ravi Viswanathan, the founder and managing partner of NewView, stated that the initiative is intended to help startups launch and manage liquidity programs more effectively. He described the arrangement as a mutual benefit for employees, companies, and investors. Viswanathan noted that the partnership is meant to make it easier for chief executive officers to consider offering liquidity to their workforces.
A recent study conducted by NewView Capital and Carta indicates that tender offers are becoming more common among later-stage startups. The data projects that such transactions among Series C and later companies have tripled over the past three years. Viswanathan observed that the practice is no longer restricted to the most valuable private firms, such as OpenAI, Databricks, or Anduril. He cited Hightouch, a marketing customization startup, as an example. NewView led a tender offer for Hightouch last year at a valuation of $1.3 billion when the company was seven years old.
Despite this growth, tender offers remain rare in the broader startup ecosystem. The same research found that only 44 tender offers were executed in the first half of 2026. Viswanathan argued that these transactions serve as strong tools for retaining talent and improving employee morale. He contended that the traditional recruiting pitch has lost some of its impact because the number of billion-dollar companies has increased. He stated that a tender offer is an opportunity to tell employees that they will receive liquidity during their tenure.
Several recent companies have conducted tender offers, including Decagon, an AI customer support startup, and Wayve, a self-driving technology developer. ElevenLabs, an AI voice generator, carried out two such offerings in less than a year. Viswanathan said that companies are likely to stay private for 12 to 15 years, a trend he believes will not change. He added that the venture sector must ensure liquidity exists for employees to prevent them from moving to public companies.
The partnership reflects a shift in how private companies manage employee compensation. As the period before a public listing extends, more founders are looking for ways to provide cash flow options to their staff. The collaboration between NewView and Carta aims to reduce the complexity of these financial transactions for companies that do not have a dedicated treasury team.
