Without knowing the exact terms of the agreement we can't say...

Without knowing the exact terms of the agreement we can't say one way or the other if the options are in lieu of cash. Occams razor and all that, this would form payment in lieu of cash to Lodge, otherwise why else would they provide them? All the announcement is saying is that The Lodge did not pay for these options with cash (i.e. 4ds did not receive any consideration for it). 4DS would not need to make any announcements that concern or provide information regarding Lodge's tax liabilities.

This also doesn't count as tax avoidance at any rate. The options will have a value, that value will need to be considered as part of any taxation. I don't know the specifics of how this is treated in a B2B scenario but presumably it would be a kind of arm's length valuation, this also depends on jurisdiction. If it's similar to personal, there are ways to defer the tax but there are a few conditions and hoops to jump through.