Capdesk
Capdesk was a UK-based equity management platform founded in 2015 that provided cap table management, shareholder registers, and employee share plan administration to private companies. Acquired by Carta in March 2025, its capabilities now form part of Carta's UK end-to-end private capital suite.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2015
- HeadquartersLondon, United Kingdom
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Capdesk does
Capdesk was a UK-based equity management platform founded in 2015 and headquartered in London, providing cap table management, shareholder register administration, and employee share plan technology to private companies. The platform enabled companies to manage equity compensation, share option schemes (including UK-specific EMI, unapproved, and growth share arrangements), and related workflows for employees, serving a customer base that primarily included UK venture-backed and growth-stage private companies. Capdesk operated a quote-based SaaS model with enterprise sales motion complemented by self-serve capabilities, and had 51-100 employees at the time of its exit.
Over its independent operating history, Capdesk raised approximately £13.8m in aggregate funding across disclosed rounds from 2017 through March 2025, with notable participation from Fuel Ventures, 1818 Venture Capital, Fidelity International Strategic Ventures, and Middlegame Ventures. In March 2025, Capdesk raised a final £1.5m round to support its employee share plans business and was subsequently acquired by US fintech Carta, integrating into Carta's UK operations. The acquisition combined Capdesk's UK-focused share plan technology with Carta's global equity management infrastructure, fund administration platform, and AI-native capabilities, effectively creating an end-to-end suite for private capital across the UK and Europe. Post-acquisition, Capdesk's product surface has been subsumed under the broader Carta Equity, Carta Fund ERP, and Carta Law offerings rather than continuing as a standalone platform.
Capdesk firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Capdesk
- Legal name
- Capdesk
- Website
- https://capdesk.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2015
- Operating status
- Acquired
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- Capdesk was a UK-based equity management platform founded in 2015 that provided cap table management, shareholder registers, and employee share plan administration to private companies. Acquired by Carta in March 2025, its capabilities now form part of Carta's UK end-to-end private capital suite.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Capdesk industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Equity Management Software
- akta.pro primary industry
- Human Capital Management (HCM) & Payroll Platforms (HDAEAEAJ)
Keywords
Where Capdesk is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- London
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Markets served
Capdesk business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Revenue model
- Equity Management SaaS: Subscription-based platform fees for cap table management, share plan administration, and equity compliance services. Pricing tiers support companies from seed stage through IPO.
- Fund Administration Services: Fund administration, portfolio analytics and valuations for venture capital and private equity funds, including LP portfolio analytics and KYC/AML services.
- Valuation Services: 409A valuations and QSBS attestation services bundled with equity management platform.
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels5 records
Capdesk product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Capdesk is an employee share plan management platform that enables companies to manage equity compensation, share option schemes, and related employee equity workflows. Following its March 2025 acquisition by Carta, Capdesk's share plan technology has been integrated into Carta's broader equity management, fund administration, and tax compliance platform for the UK and European private capital market.
Product overview
Capdesk operated as a standalone employee share plan management platform. Following its acquisition by Carta in 2025, it has been integrated into Carta's equity management ecosystem. The platform provided tools for companies to manage equity compensation, share option schemes, and related employee equity workflows.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Capdesk Employee Share Plans Platform Employee share plan management platform that enables companies to manage equity compensation, share option schemes, and related workflows for employees. Used by private companies in the UK and Europe to administer share plans end-to-end.
- Carta Equity Suite Equity management product within the Carta UK suite for planning and managing equity throughout the company lifecycle, from fundraising through IPO. For private corporations needing cap table, share plan, and equity compliance workflows.
- Carta Fund ERP Fund administration, portfolio analytics and valuations system within the Carta UK suite. For venture capital and private equity firms needing fund admin, portfolio monitoring, valuations, LP reporting, and KYC/AML services.
Quantifiable outcome
- Real-time capital activity reflected in cap tables within 1-2 days of transaction
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Capdesk
Customer profileNamed customers9 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Capdesk technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
Capdesk partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- CartacoreUS fintech company Carta acquired UK counterpart Capdesk in March 2025, integrating Capdesk's employee share plan capabilities into Carta's equity management platform. The acquisition brings together Carta's global equity management infrastructure with Capdesk's UK-focused share plan technology, creating an end-to-end suite for private capital in the UK and Europe.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Capdesk competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Carta: Parent company and dominant private capital infrastructure platform. Direct overlap across cap table management, fund administration, valuations, and equity compliance, but operating at significantly greater scale globally.
- Shareworks (Morgan Stanley at Work): Established equity plan administration platform owned by Morgan Stanley. Serves both private and public company employee share schemes, overlapping with Capdesk's share plan management capabilities at larger enterprise scale.
- AngelList: Private markets platform offering fund formation, rolling funds, and cap table tooling. Adjacent peer with overlapping investor and fund manager customer base.
- iCapital: Platform for alternative investments serving wealth managers and asset owners. Overlaps with Carta's LP portfolio analytics and limited partner solutions.
Direct peers
- Pulley: Direct competitor offering cap table management, 409A valuations, and equity compliance for startups and growth-stage companies. Comparable product surface area and target customer base in private companies.
- Ledgy: European-headquartered cap table and employee equity platform with strong UK/EU share scheme capabilities. Direct peer to Capdesk's core UK share plan offering with overlapping customers and use cases.
- Eqvista: Cap table management and 409A valuation platform for private companies. Direct peer with overlapping product surface area in equity management and valuation services.
- Juniper Square: Fund administration and investor relations platform for private equity and venture capital fund managers. Overlaps with Carta's fund ERP offering and Capdesk's fund administration services.
Emerging players
- Vestwell: Retirement and employee savings platform with adjacent employee benefits administration capabilities. Partially overlapping with the broader human capital management ecosystem where share plans are administered.
Others
- Sharefile (by Diligent): Governance and secure file sharing platform used by corporate and fund boards. Provides adjacent workflow tooling for compliance, audit, and board-level equity oversight that complements equity management platforms.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Capdesk social profiles
Digital presenceCapdesk financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Capdesk leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
Capdesk funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds5 records
Investors7 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Capdesk M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Capdesk
What does Capdesk do?
Capdesk is an employee share plan management platform that enables companies to manage equity compensation, share option schemes, and related employee equity workflows. Following its March 2025 acquisition by Carta, Capdesk's share plan technology has been integrated into Carta's broader equity management, fund administration, and tax compliance platform for the UK and European private capital market.
Is Capdesk a public or private company?
Capdesk is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently acquired.
When was Capdesk founded?
Capdesk was founded in 2015. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Capdesk based?
Capdesk is headquartered in London, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Capdesk make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Equity Management SaaS are the primary driver. The others are fund Administration Services and valuation Services.
Who are Capdesk's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Carta, Shareworks (Morgan Stanley at Work), AngelList and iCapital. Direct peers are Pulley, Ledgy, Eqvista and Juniper Square. Vestwell is listed as an emerging player. Sharefile (by Diligent) is listed as an others.
Does Capdesk have an API?
No public API is recorded for Capdesk.
What industry is Capdesk in?
Capdesk's product category is Equity Management Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HDAEAEAJ, Human Capital Management (HCM) & Payroll Platforms.