Understoodit

September 18, 2013

The Upside Foundation of Canada today announced its first “exit”. The Upside Foundation holds stock options in many Canadian companies, and when those companies are sold, the Upside Foundation exercises its stock options. Understoodit previously pledged stock options to the Upside Foundation, and with EventMobi acquiring Understoodit, the Upside Foundation has seen its first “exit” leading to a donation.The donation is being distributed to both East York Learning Experience and Mentoring Junior Kids Organization (MJKO) – both Canadian charities focusing on education.  

The Foundation worked with Understoodit’s founders to finalize where to allocate the proceeds. The Upside Foundation has been created to facilitate the opportunity for Canadian startups to “share the upside” with Canadian charities by using the Foundation’s platform. Following the theme “share the upside”, The Upside Foundation has a unique business model to help the early-stage technology sector support local charitable efforts.  It is a unique model for corporate philanthropy – donate stock options or equity, not cash.

“We are very excited to see an exit so early in our process.  It serves as a great example of a Canadian startup sharing the upside with Canadian charities,” said Rob Antoniades, Co-founder of The Upside Foundation of Canada.

“As an entrepreneur I’ve benefitted greatly from entrepreneurs, family members and individuals in the community providing their help and expertise. Our contribution to two charities, helping to improve education in diverse communities, is our way of giving back to a community that has helped us. We greatly appreciate the Upside Foundation for working hard to ensure that it becomes easy for entrepreneurs to share the upside of their success with others who are less fortunate,” said Liam Kaufman, Founder of Understoodit.com.