What Shareworks does

Shareworks, now operating under the Morgan Stanley at Work brand, is a stock plan administration and workplace financial solutions platform owned by Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS). The platform administers equity compensation programs for private and public companies, startups, venture capital firms, and law firms, offering services including equity plan administration, 409A valuations, liquidity solutions, financial reporting, global intelligence, and executive services. The offering is bundled with retirement solutions, nonqualified deferred compensation plans, financial wellness programs, and education financing delivered through a partnership with Vestwell Holdings Inc. The product suite is delivered through Morgan Stanley's enterprise direct sales motion and its network of Financial Advisors, with employees accessing benefits via an online self-service portal.

The core technology centers on equity compensation management — tracking grants, managing plan participant data, calculating tax obligations, generating financial reporting, and supporting compliance for both private and public company stock plans. The platform integrates with employer HR, payroll, and reporting systems and supports multinational operations through its Global Intelligence capability. Distribution is enabled by Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC and E*TRADE Financial Corporate Services, Inc. as the primary operating entities, alongside legacy acquired entities Solium Capital LLC and Solium Plan Managers LLC. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed; the revenue model is subscription/recurring services revenue tied to plan administration and employer contracts across the Americas (United States and Canada in English and French).

The business model is enterprise field sales with relationship-led retention, leveraging the Morgan Stanley brand and Financial Advisor distribution network. Customer segmentation spans small businesses, startups, enterprise clients, public companies, and strategic partners (VC/accelerators and other partners such as law firms), with tailored service tiers for each. Named enterprise adoption includes MongoDB as a client spotlight case. Marketing and demand generation are driven through the Thrive annual conference, regional forums, the Invested at Work podcast, and the State of the Workplace Financial Benefits Study. As a division of a publicly traded parent, the platform does not raise external funding and operates as part of Morgan Stanley's broader institutional and workplace financial services franchise.

Name

Shareworks

Legal name

Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC

Website

https://shareworks.com

Company type

Public

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

Shareworks, now Morgan Stanley at Work, is a stock plan administration and workplace financial solutions platform serving public companies, private companies, startups, and VC firms across the Americas with equity administration, retirement, deferred compensation, and financial wellness services delivered through Morgan Stanley's enterprise sales and Financial Advisor channels.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Equity Compensation Administration

NAICS

Pharmacy Benefit Management and Other Third Party Administration of Insurance and Pension Funds (524292)

akta.pro primary industry

Equity Compensation & Global Share Plan Administration (BPACAHAI)

Keywords

• Equity compensation administration
• Stock plan management
• Workplace financial solutions
• Retirement plan services
• Financial wellness platform

Headquarters

HQ city

Calgary

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Stock Plan Administration Services: Equity compensation administration services provided to employers including plan setup, compliance, reporting, and participant management for stock plans

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Shareworks, now operating as part of Morgan Stanley at Work, is a stock plan administration platform that provides equity compensation management for private and public companies. Its offerings include equity administration, 409A valuations, liquidity solutions, financial reporting, global intelligence, executive services, retirement solutions, nonqualified deferred compensation plans, and financial wellness programs. The platform is sold to employers ranging from startups to large enterprises, with employees accessing their benefits through a self-service portal.

Product overview

Morgan Stanley at Work is a comprehensive workplace financial solutions platform formerly known as Shareworks (along with StockPlan Connect and E*TRADE stock plan accounts). The platform offers a unified suite of products spanning equity compensation administration for both private and public companies, executive services, retirement solutions, deferred compensation plans, financial wellness programs, and education financing through Vestwell. The core offering centers on equity plan administration and management, supported by ancillary services including 409A valuations, liquidity solutions, and global intelligence for multinational organizations. Solutions are segmented by company type (small business, startup, enterprise) and delivered through a combination of digital tools, Financial Advisor guidance, and educational resources.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Equity Solutions for Private Companies Comprehensive equity compensation solutions for private companies including equity administration, liquidity programs, and 409A valuations, serving employers from startups through large private enterprises.
• Equity Solutions for Public Companies Equity compensation solutions for publicly traded companies including administration, financial reporting, and global intelligence for managing employee stock plans at scale.
• Executive Services Dedicated services for executives including equity compensation management, equity award analysis, and specialized financial planning delivered by dedicated relationship managers.
• Retirement Solutions Workplace retirement planning solutions with support from Financial Advisors to help employees reach long-term goals, including 401(k) and related retirement plan offerings.
• Deferred Compensation Plans Nonqualified Deferred Compensation (NQDC) plans for executives and highly compensated employees, used as a tool to recruit, retain, and reward executives.
• Financial Wellness Financial education, digital tools, and personalized financial guidance to help employees achieve financial well-being at any stage of their financial journey.
• Saving and Giving Employee benefit programs including student loan debt repayment, college savings benefits, and workplace charitable giving options.
• Liquidity Solutions Liquidity programs enabling employees with equity compensation to access funds in private company scenarios.
• 409A Valuations Independent 409A valuation services to determine fair market value of company stock for equity compensation and tax purposes.
• Financial Reporting Solutions Financial reporting tools and services for companies to track and report on equity compensation in compliance with public company obligations.
• Global Intelligence International equity compensation management and intelligence capabilities for global organizations operating across multiple jurisdictions.
• Equity Award Services Analysis and optimization services for executive equity awards, supporting specialized executive financial planning.
• Charitable Giving Workplace charitable giving programs enabling employees to support causes they care about through payroll-integrated giving.

Named customers1 record

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Ledgy: Ledgy is a European-headquartered equity management and employee participation platform with strong international capabilities. It is a direct competitor particularly for growth-stage and internationally distributed clients in segments where Shareworks markets Global Intelligence.
• Pulley: Pulley offers cap-table management and equity administration tooling tailored to startups and growth-stage companies. It competes head-to-head with Shareworks in the startup segment on UX, pricing transparency, and 409A valuations.
• Global Shares: Global Shares is a dedicated equity plan management software and services provider for multinational employers. It is a direct peer in the corporate equity administration space, particularly for cross-border stock plans where Shareworks markets Global Intelligence.
• Carta: Carta is a leading equity management and cap-table platform serving private and public companies, with growing equity administration and liquidity solutions. It directly competes with Shareworks across startup, scale-up, and increasingly enterprise equity administration.
• Certent: Certent (now part of the Vector Equity platform ecosystem) provides equity administration and financial reporting software for public and private companies. It is a direct peer in equity plan management and disclosure reporting workflows.

Broad incumbents

• Equiniti: Equiniti provides share registration, employee equity plans, and investor services globally. As a broad incumbent in stock plan administration, it competes with Shareworks for enterprise and multinational equity administration mandates.
• Fidelity Stock Plan Services: Fidelity's Stock Plan Services business administers equity awards for thousands of public and private companies, leveraging Fidelity's broader retirement and workplace footprint. It overlaps with Shareworks' equity administration offering alongside retirement and financial wellness adjacencies.
• Charles Schwab Equity Award Center: Schwab's Equity Award Center administers equity compensation for corporate clients, leveraging Schwab's brokerage and retirement scale. It is a broad incumbent peer competing with Shareworks for public-company equity administration relationships.
• Computershare: Computershare is a global transfer agent and stock plan services provider with deep enterprise and public-company coverage. It is a broad incumbent peer offering equity administration at scale across many geographies, overlapping with Shareworks' public-company and enterprise segments.

Emerging players

• Vested Finance / Equityzen: EquityZen is a marketplace for private-company shares that also provides equity administration and tender offerings. It is an emerging player adjacent to Shareworks' liquidity solutions product line, particularly relevant for private-company employees seeking liquidity events.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/playlist?list=PLMUnYeeTvzNt5Zd5XlqQGQTLrAHS-x1zu
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/showcase/morgan-stanley-at-work
• Xx.com/Solium
• Facebookfacebook.com/ShareworksbyMorganStanley

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A6 records

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Shareworks