Backblaze Announces Inducement Grant Under Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)(4)
Backblaze Announces Inducement Grant Under Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)(4)
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nasdaq listing rule 5635(c)(4)regulatory
NASDAQ Listing Rule 5635(c)(4) is a rule that requires a company to get approval from its shareholders before selling a large amount of its shares, usually over 20%. This helps protect investors by making sure the company doesn't flood the market with new shares without their say, which could lower the stock's value.
equity inducement awardfinancial
An equity inducement award is a grant of company stock or stock-based rights given to a new employee as a hiring incentive, paid in addition to normal pay and benefit programs. It works like a signing bonus but in company shares, aligning the hire’s interests with shareholders while also increasing the number of outstanding shares; investors watch these awards for their impact on ownership dilution, executive motivation, and reported compensation costs.
restricted stock unitsfinancial
Restricted stock units are a type of company reward where employees are promised shares of stock, but they only fully own these shares after meeting certain conditions, like staying with the company for a set time. They matter because they can become valuable assets and are often used to motivate employees to help the company succeed.
performance-based stock unitsfinancial
Performance-based stock units are company promises to deliver shares or cash to employees or executives only if the business hits specific financial or operational goals over a set period. Like a bonus that only pays out when certain milestones are reached, they link pay to company performance and matter to investors because they can dilute the share count, affect reported earnings when they vest, and signal how management is being incentivized.
rsusfinancial
RSUs, or restricted stock units, are a form of company shares given to employees as part of their compensation. They are typically awarded with certain restrictions, such as a waiting period before they can be fully owned or sold, similar to earning a gift that becomes fully yours over time. For investors, RSUs can impact a company's stock offerings and reflect how much the company relies on stock-based incentives to attract and retain talent.
psusfinancial
PSUs are company shares promised to employees or executives that only become actual stock if the business hits specific performance targets over a set period. For investors, PSUs matter because they link pay to measurable outcomes — similar to a conditional bonus that converts into ownership — which can influence management decisions, dilution of shares, and signals about confidence in future results.
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SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
Backblaze, Inc. (Nasdaq: BLZE) today announced that on May 28, 2026, it granted an equity inducement award to Anuj Kumar, the Company’s Chief Revenue Officer, as a material inducement to Mr. Kumar’s employment with the Company.
Mr. Kumar brings over two decades of experience scaling cloud revenue organizations at enterprise infrastructure companies, notably driving NetApp's worldwide cloud business during a period of significant growth. He joins Backblaze as the company advances its go-to-market transformation, while AI adoption drives a new phase of infrastructure demand.
The inducement award consists of 316,630 restricted stock units (“RSUs”) and 105,540 performance-based stock units (“PSUs”) for Mr. Kumar.
The RSUs will vest as to 25% of the underlying shares after one year, with the balance vesting in equal quarterly installments over the remaining three years.
The PSUs will vest as to 33.33% of the underlying shares following the release of 2026 earnings, with the balance vesting in equal quarterly installments over the remaining two years. The Board of Directors has approved a performance-based philosophy that aligns with the main driver of our shareholder value creation, which is the acceleration of our B2 Cloud Storage revenue growth. The actual vested PSU amount will be adjusted for the performance of the B2 Revenue Growth in Q4 of 2026.
RSUs and PSUs are subject to Mr. Kumar’s continued employment with Backblaze through each applicable vesting date.
About Backblaze
Backblaze (NASDAQ: BLZE) gives businesses the freedom to innovate without limits by removing the barriers of lock-in, complexity, and cost. Our high-performance cloud object storage accelerates AI workflows, powers data-heavy applications, streamlines media management, and protects critical data. As an award-winning independent cloud, we provide unparalleled levels of interoperability that enable over 500,000 of our customers to reach and serve hundreds of millions of end users in 175 countries around the world. For more information, please go to www.backblaze.com.
