Employee stock ownership has become a familiar part of startup building across mature tech ecosystems. Yet in Central and Eastern Europe, equity is still too often viewed as a "nice-to-have" rather than a meaningful part of compensation. According to Stefan Surina, founder and CEO of Czech-based Eldison and legal advisor to startups including unicorn Mews, the biggest obstacle it that too few founders and employees believe equity will ever pay off.

"The main blocker isn't that we don't have perfect legal structures," Surina says. "Founders can already start with the tools available today. The bigger problem is that employees don't ask for equity because they haven't seen enough examples where it actually changed someone's life."

Having advised startups from incorporation through multiple funding rounds, he has watched the region's ecosystem mature. Yet when it comes to ESOP adoption, he believes Europe still faces a cultural rather than technical challenge. The Recursive spoke with Stefan Surina on what needs to happen before employee ownership becomes a standard part of startup culture.

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