Give your team a stake — tax-optimised, no notary.

Give employees, advisors or freelancers real participation through Beel virtual shares — with vesting and cliff, tax-optimised and with the option of early liquidity. No notary and no dry-income problem.

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Virtual shares

Employee participation through virtual shares

Beel gives your team a stake through virtual shares — equity profit-participation rights that put employees on an equal economic footing with shareholders, but with no notary, no commercial-register entry and no voting rights. That is what makes tax-optimised participation with vesting and cliff possible in the first place.

Tax

No dry income

Tax is only due on exercise or sale — not on receipt, unlike ESOP and real shares.

Germany

§19a EStG deferral

Taxation is deferred; up to €2,000 a year stays tax-free.

Liquidity

Secondary market

Exercised shares are transferable via a secondary market — liquidity before an exit.

Learn more about virtual shares

The options compared

Beel versus ESOP, VSOP and real shares

  Company shares ESOP VSOP Beel virtual shares
Set-up Notarial entry & commercial register Notarised contract Contract with employees Digital contract, no notary
Tax Income tax (14–45%) + 25% capital-gains tax on appreciation — dry income Income tax (14–45%) at exit + dry income on exercise Income tax (14–45%) at exit Tax only on exercise (§19a EStG available), then 25% on gains; timing freely chosen
Liquidity Transferable only via notary Not transferable Not transferable Transferable via a secondary market
Rights Shareholder rights Full shareholder rights after exercise Share of exit proceeds Share of exit, liquidation and profit distributions

How it works

Three steps to participation

Creating participations is fast and fully digital. You set the rules, your team signs online — and tax is only due for your employees once they actually realise the value.

01

Create a plan

Set vesting, cliff and duration — with legally compliant templates, optimised for GmbHs and UGs.

02

Invite recipients

Send an invitation link. Recipients sign digitally — the process is completely free for them.

03

Exercise & liquidate

Tax is only due on exercise or sale — not on receipt and not during vesting. In Germany, tax deferral under §19a EStG applies, and up to €2,000 per year remains tax-free (§3 No. 39 EStG). Beel virtual shares are also tradable via a secondary market.

The point

Participation that motivates.
Not one that burdens.

Questions about employee participation

Is employee participation through Beel legal?
Yes. Beel is based on a legally sound participation model using Beel virtual shares for Germany and Austria, developed with law firms.

Do I need a notary?
No. The whole process is digital — from creating the plan to signing and managing it. No paper, no notary.

When do employees pay tax?
Tax is only due on exercise or sale — not on receipt and not during vesting. In Germany the deferral under §19a EStG applies, in Austria under §3(1)(15)(b) EStG; in Germany up to €2,000 per year is tax-free (§3 No. 39 EStG).

Can employees get early liquidity?
Yes. Exercised Beel virtual shares are transferable through a secondary market — under the rules each issuing startup sets. A sale option before the exit, not trading.

Who can I give participation to?
Anyone whose success is closely tied to your company: employees, advisors, freelancers, influencers or business partners.

Ready to give your team a stake?

Create a plan with vesting and cliff, or talk to an expert first.

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Set up your first participation plan.

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