It depends how much money was lost by investors/shareholders and if they feel "misled"This is one area where I strongly disagree with Galloway, the feds ain't gonna do shyt to Adam and to a bunch of other clowns in tech.
WSJ: WeWork: A $20 Billion Startup Fueled by Silicon Valley Pixie Dust; CEO OUSTED REMAINS CHAIRMAN
- Thread starter ☑︎#VoteDemocrat
- Start date
Fillerguy
Veteran
These nikkas just finished our corporate American home office a few months ago.
we got a bar and celeb cooking classes every 3rd Thursday of the month.
we got a bar and celeb cooking classes every 3rd Thursday of the month.
88m3
Fast Money & Foreign Objects
wsj.com
WeWork’s Valuation Falls to $8 Billion Under SoftBank Rescue Offer
Liz Hoffman and Maureen Farrell
6-8 minutes
WeWork’s board is expected to meet tomorrow to weigh emergency-financing options including a takeover by SoftBank Group Corp. 9984 -0.02% that would slash the co-working company’s valuation to about $8 billion and alleviate a looming cash crunch.
Ahead of a deadline tonight to submit bids, SoftBank has offered to lend $5 billion to the struggling startup and accelerate a $1.5 billion equity investment that had been scheduled for next year, people familiar with the matter said. SoftBank also would offer to buy more than $1 billion of stock from existing investors and employees, some of the people said.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. is expected to field a competing loan package that would bring together a group of outside investors. There is no guarantee it will be able to, and the terms it has outlined to potential investors so far are more expensive and complicated than what SoftBank is offering.
SoftBank’s offer would value WeWork at less than half of what the company had been looking to fetch in a now-scrapped initial public offering. It is even further from the $47 billion at which WeWork was valued in a funding from SoftBank in January.
SoftBank’s offer, first reported earlier this month by The Wall Street Journal, would further sideline Adam Neumann, WeWork’s flamboyant co-founder who was recently forced out as chief executive. SoftBank would likely buy some shares from Mr. Neumann and would seek to further diminish his voting control over the company he co-founded in 2010, some of the people said.
A top SoftBank executive, Marcelo Claure, would succeed Mr. Neumann as board chairman and would head a search for outside leadership, including potentially a new CEO to succeed the two men who have been sharing the job since Mr. Neumann’s departure.
0:00 / 4:06
WeWork’s Risky Business Model, Explained
The We Co.’s rapid expansion and flexible business model have helped it stay out in front of competitors. But some investors are saying its public offering might not be worth the risk. Here’s why. Photo: David 'Dee' Delgado/Bloomberg
The scramble to cobble together a rescue for WeWork reflects the company’s grim reality: It is rapidly running out of money and few investors beyond SoftBank, which already owns one-third of it, are eager to step into the fray.
SoftBank is racing to save an investment that has become a major black eye. Its founder, Masayoshi Son, was among Mr. Neumann’s most enthusiastic backers and the Japanese conglomerate invested several times in WeWork, whose parent is officially known as We Co.
If its deal goes through, SoftBank will have invested well over $10 billion, and lent $5 billion more, to a company now valued at $8 billion or less. Its investments are split between the Japanese-listed parent company and the $100 billion Vision Fund in which SoftBank’s own money is mingled with that of outside investors.
SoftBank expects that with new money and management blood, and a slimmed-down business focused on leasing office space, the company can turn around its finances, become profitable and eventually go public, according to people familiar with the deal.
Under the deal on the table this week, the Vision Fund would move up a $1.5 billion investment in WeWork due April 2020 that had been agreed to in 2018 and earlier this year as part of a larger, multileg investment. It also would likely fold into WeWork the Vision Fund’s stakes in the startup’s subsidiaries in Asia with a paper gain on those investments—though it would be offset by the loss on its stake in the company’s core business, according to one of the people.
WeWork’s swift fall, in which it lost nearly $40 billion of value, marks a stunning collapse with little precedent for what was once one of the country’s most valuable startups.
Just five weeks ago, WeWork was planning an IPO that its bankers at JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. told company executives could fetch a valuation around $20 billion. Investors balked at the company’s steep and growing losses and a tangle of business and personal dealings with Mr. Neumann, whose erratic management style and party-heavy lifestyle also raised eyebrows.
The company scrapped the public offering, Mr. Neumann resigned as chief executive and his wife, Rebekah Neumann, stepped down as We’s chief brand officer. Mr. Neumann’s influence also was pared back, giving him three votes per share, down from 10 and earlier, 20.
Under its new co-CEOs, Artie Minson and Sebastian Gunningham, WeWork has been crafting plans to sell or shut down side ventures, including a private elementary school and event-planning website Meetup.com, to focus on its core business of leasing office buildings, renovating them and subletting to short-term tenants.
WeWork also is planning to cut thousands of employees, but delayed the layoffs earlier this month because it couldn’t afford the severance costs, people familiar with the matter have said.
In a note to staff last week, Messrs. Minson and Gunningham said the company would “treat employees fairly who are impacted.” They acknowledged the toll that the company’s swift change in fortune has taken on its workers, whose expected IPO riches have evaporated.
“Many of you are asking or receiving questions for which we don’t have final answers at this time,” the two executives wrote in the note.
—Eliot Brown contributed to this article.
Write to Liz Hoffman at liz.hoffman@wsj.com and Maureen Farrell at maureen.farrell@wsj.com
Copyright ©2019 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8
WeWork’s Valuation Falls to $8 Billion Under SoftBank Rescue Offer
Liz Hoffman and Maureen Farrell
6-8 minutes
WeWork’s board is expected to meet tomorrow to weigh emergency-financing options including a takeover by SoftBank Group Corp. 9984 -0.02% that would slash the co-working company’s valuation to about $8 billion and alleviate a looming cash crunch.
Ahead of a deadline tonight to submit bids, SoftBank has offered to lend $5 billion to the struggling startup and accelerate a $1.5 billion equity investment that had been scheduled for next year, people familiar with the matter said. SoftBank also would offer to buy more than $1 billion of stock from existing investors and employees, some of the people said.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. is expected to field a competing loan package that would bring together a group of outside investors. There is no guarantee it will be able to, and the terms it has outlined to potential investors so far are more expensive and complicated than what SoftBank is offering.
SoftBank’s offer would value WeWork at less than half of what the company had been looking to fetch in a now-scrapped initial public offering. It is even further from the $47 billion at which WeWork was valued in a funding from SoftBank in January.
SoftBank’s offer, first reported earlier this month by The Wall Street Journal, would further sideline Adam Neumann, WeWork’s flamboyant co-founder who was recently forced out as chief executive. SoftBank would likely buy some shares from Mr. Neumann and would seek to further diminish his voting control over the company he co-founded in 2010, some of the people said.
A top SoftBank executive, Marcelo Claure, would succeed Mr. Neumann as board chairman and would head a search for outside leadership, including potentially a new CEO to succeed the two men who have been sharing the job since Mr. Neumann’s departure.
0:00 / 4:06
WeWork’s Risky Business Model, Explained
The We Co.’s rapid expansion and flexible business model have helped it stay out in front of competitors. But some investors are saying its public offering might not be worth the risk. Here’s why. Photo: David 'Dee' Delgado/Bloomberg
The scramble to cobble together a rescue for WeWork reflects the company’s grim reality: It is rapidly running out of money and few investors beyond SoftBank, which already owns one-third of it, are eager to step into the fray.
SoftBank is racing to save an investment that has become a major black eye. Its founder, Masayoshi Son, was among Mr. Neumann’s most enthusiastic backers and the Japanese conglomerate invested several times in WeWork, whose parent is officially known as We Co.
If its deal goes through, SoftBank will have invested well over $10 billion, and lent $5 billion more, to a company now valued at $8 billion or less. Its investments are split between the Japanese-listed parent company and the $100 billion Vision Fund in which SoftBank’s own money is mingled with that of outside investors.
SoftBank expects that with new money and management blood, and a slimmed-down business focused on leasing office space, the company can turn around its finances, become profitable and eventually go public, according to people familiar with the deal.
Under the deal on the table this week, the Vision Fund would move up a $1.5 billion investment in WeWork due April 2020 that had been agreed to in 2018 and earlier this year as part of a larger, multileg investment. It also would likely fold into WeWork the Vision Fund’s stakes in the startup’s subsidiaries in Asia with a paper gain on those investments—though it would be offset by the loss on its stake in the company’s core business, according to one of the people.
WeWork’s swift fall, in which it lost nearly $40 billion of value, marks a stunning collapse with little precedent for what was once one of the country’s most valuable startups.
Just five weeks ago, WeWork was planning an IPO that its bankers at JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. told company executives could fetch a valuation around $20 billion. Investors balked at the company’s steep and growing losses and a tangle of business and personal dealings with Mr. Neumann, whose erratic management style and party-heavy lifestyle also raised eyebrows.
The company scrapped the public offering, Mr. Neumann resigned as chief executive and his wife, Rebekah Neumann, stepped down as We’s chief brand officer. Mr. Neumann’s influence also was pared back, giving him three votes per share, down from 10 and earlier, 20.
Under its new co-CEOs, Artie Minson and Sebastian Gunningham, WeWork has been crafting plans to sell or shut down side ventures, including a private elementary school and event-planning website Meetup.com, to focus on its core business of leasing office buildings, renovating them and subletting to short-term tenants.
WeWork also is planning to cut thousands of employees, but delayed the layoffs earlier this month because it couldn’t afford the severance costs, people familiar with the matter have said.
In a note to staff last week, Messrs. Minson and Gunningham said the company would “treat employees fairly who are impacted.” They acknowledged the toll that the company’s swift change in fortune has taken on its workers, whose expected IPO riches have evaporated.
“Many of you are asking or receiving questions for which we don’t have final answers at this time,” the two executives wrote in the note.
—Eliot Brown contributed to this article.
Write to Liz Hoffman at liz.hoffman@wsj.com and Maureen Farrell at maureen.farrell@wsj.com
Copyright ©2019 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8
GnauzBookOfRhymes
Superstar
banks are the biggest gangsters...cooold bloooded...went from trying to sell this garbage ass stock to its customers (via IPO) based on $20B valuation, to trying to buy it for less than the $8B valuation used by Softbank as its baseline valuation.
WeWork CEOs tell staff layoffs are coming in leaked email ahead of decision on rescue package
WeWork CEOs tell staff layoffs are coming in leaked email ahead of decision on rescue package
Julie Bort
WeWork front desk
WeWork
WeWork's CEOs find themselves in a predicament where they must promise to shrink and grow at the same time.
In an email sent to WeWork employees last week and seen by Business Insider, co-CEOs Artie Minson and Sebastian Gunningham told employees once again to brace for layoffs, which they say they expect to take place "in the coming weeks" but could be executed as rolling layoffs and take a while to complete.
As BI has previously reported, executives had warned employees internally about impending cuts in early October which could hit up to 25% of its workforce.
"As part of refocusing around our core business, we are strategically reorganizing our operating model with the goal of creating a leaner, more efficient organization. As we have mentioned, this will result in a smaller, global workforce ... While we cannot commit to an exact timeline, we expect this exercise to roll out largely by function and over the coming weeks. In certain jurisdictions, the timing may be different," they wrote.
The email also said that WeWork is still opening new buildings worldwide which means it's still hiring support people for those locations, known as "community managers" or "community staff."
"It is important to note that, as part of this reorganization, our Community teams will not be reduced. In fact, they will continue to grow as new buildings come online throughout the world," the CEOs wrote.
WeWork's board has been working feverishly to secure new financing. WeWork may take a bailout from SoftBank, a deal which will value the company between $7.5 billion and $8 billion, CNBC reported on Monday. A competing proposal from JPMorgan values the company lower. WeWork's board is set to meet Tuesday to decide on a financing plan.
Read: WeWork's board talked to more than 75 financing sources in a week, the new CEOs told employees in a leaked email
A potential WeWork bankruptcy has been much speculated about in the press.
The CEOs tried to downplay its financial problems as reported in the press by telling employees that such reports were based on "rumors or speculation originating from outside the company."
The executives also promised that employees who are impacted by the cuts will get severance, but declined to give details.
WeWork CEOs tell staff layoffs are coming in leaked email ahead of decision on rescue package
Julie Bort
WeWork front desk
WeWork
- WeWork's CEOs have once again warned employees to brace to layoffs.
- The CEOs also promised that the team was working on severance packages.
- At the same time, the CEOs told employees it was still opening new buildings in locations worldwide and hiring community staff.
WeWork's CEOs find themselves in a predicament where they must promise to shrink and grow at the same time.
In an email sent to WeWork employees last week and seen by Business Insider, co-CEOs Artie Minson and Sebastian Gunningham told employees once again to brace for layoffs, which they say they expect to take place "in the coming weeks" but could be executed as rolling layoffs and take a while to complete.
As BI has previously reported, executives had warned employees internally about impending cuts in early October which could hit up to 25% of its workforce.
"As part of refocusing around our core business, we are strategically reorganizing our operating model with the goal of creating a leaner, more efficient organization. As we have mentioned, this will result in a smaller, global workforce ... While we cannot commit to an exact timeline, we expect this exercise to roll out largely by function and over the coming weeks. In certain jurisdictions, the timing may be different," they wrote.
The email also said that WeWork is still opening new buildings worldwide which means it's still hiring support people for those locations, known as "community managers" or "community staff."
"It is important to note that, as part of this reorganization, our Community teams will not be reduced. In fact, they will continue to grow as new buildings come online throughout the world," the CEOs wrote.
WeWork's board has been working feverishly to secure new financing. WeWork may take a bailout from SoftBank, a deal which will value the company between $7.5 billion and $8 billion, CNBC reported on Monday. A competing proposal from JPMorgan values the company lower. WeWork's board is set to meet Tuesday to decide on a financing plan.
Read: WeWork's board talked to more than 75 financing sources in a week, the new CEOs told employees in a leaked email
A potential WeWork bankruptcy has been much speculated about in the press.
The CEOs tried to downplay its financial problems as reported in the press by telling employees that such reports were based on "rumors or speculation originating from outside the company."
The executives also promised that employees who are impacted by the cuts will get severance, but declined to give details.
Futuristic Eskimo
All Star
Goldman was pitching at something like $80bn at the high end so it's even more ridiculous than that...
88m3
Fast Money & Foreign Objects
Jhoon
Spontaneous Mishaps and Hijinks
And they said they were worth $80 billion not too long ago. Funny how time reveals all.
InGodWeTrust
Tall & Handsome in ATL
Now I work in a WeWork space. Crazy
wsj.com
WSJ News Exclusive | SoftBank to Take Control of WeWork
Maureen Farrell
4 minutes
WeWork, which had a goal to dominate the shared-office-space market, went from a hot startup to a bailout candidate in a month. Photo: kate munsch/Reuters
Updated Oct. 22, 2019 8:38 am ET
SoftBank Group Corp. 9984 -0.02% won approval from WeWork’s board to take control of the troubled co-working startup, in a deal that would hand co-founder Adam Neumann nearly $1.7 billion and sever most of his ties with the company.
WeWork, in danger of running out of cash in the coming weeks, chose a rescue offer from SoftBank over a competing proposal from JPMorgan Chase JPM 2.48% & Co., according to people familiar with the matter. It had asked both parties to submit proposals by a deadline yesterday.
The deal is expected to value the company at about $8 billion, a far cry from what it was expected to fetch in an initial public offering earlier this year and even less than the $47 billion at which a January investment from SoftBank pegged its worth.
As part of the deal, SoftBank, which already owns about a third of the company, is to buy nearly $1 billion of stock in WeWork’s parent from Mr. Neumann, who was forced out as chief executive after pushback from new investors scuttled the IPO. The Japanese conglomerate will also extend him roughly $500 million in credit to help repay a loan facility of the same amount led by JPMorgan, and also pay Mr. Neumann a $185 million consulting fee, the people said.
0:00 / 4:06
WeWork’s Risky Business Model, Explained
The We Co.'s IPO is now postponed after the company announced it would withdraw its request to go public. Here's a look at the company's business model and why some investors were eyeing the risk. Photo: David 'Dee' Delgado/Bloomberg
Mr. Neumann, who is still chairman of We Co., as the parent is known, is also expected to step down from the board, the people said. He will maintain a stake in the company and remain a board observer.
The nearly $1 billion share purchase is part of a tender offer of as much as $3 billion from SoftBank to be extended to the company’s employees and other investors.
WeWork’s board is expected to announce this deal Tuesday, though the people warned it could be delayed.
(More to come)
Write to Maureen Farrell at maureen.farrell@wsj.com
Copyright ©2019 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8
WSJ News Exclusive | SoftBank to Take Control of WeWork
Maureen Farrell
4 minutes
WeWork, which had a goal to dominate the shared-office-space market, went from a hot startup to a bailout candidate in a month. Photo: kate munsch/Reuters
Updated Oct. 22, 2019 8:38 am ET
SoftBank Group Corp. 9984 -0.02% won approval from WeWork’s board to take control of the troubled co-working startup, in a deal that would hand co-founder Adam Neumann nearly $1.7 billion and sever most of his ties with the company.
WeWork, in danger of running out of cash in the coming weeks, chose a rescue offer from SoftBank over a competing proposal from JPMorgan Chase JPM 2.48% & Co., according to people familiar with the matter. It had asked both parties to submit proposals by a deadline yesterday.
The deal is expected to value the company at about $8 billion, a far cry from what it was expected to fetch in an initial public offering earlier this year and even less than the $47 billion at which a January investment from SoftBank pegged its worth.
As part of the deal, SoftBank, which already owns about a third of the company, is to buy nearly $1 billion of stock in WeWork’s parent from Mr. Neumann, who was forced out as chief executive after pushback from new investors scuttled the IPO. The Japanese conglomerate will also extend him roughly $500 million in credit to help repay a loan facility of the same amount led by JPMorgan, and also pay Mr. Neumann a $185 million consulting fee, the people said.
0:00 / 4:06
WeWork’s Risky Business Model, Explained
The We Co.'s IPO is now postponed after the company announced it would withdraw its request to go public. Here's a look at the company's business model and why some investors were eyeing the risk. Photo: David 'Dee' Delgado/Bloomberg
Mr. Neumann, who is still chairman of We Co., as the parent is known, is also expected to step down from the board, the people said. He will maintain a stake in the company and remain a board observer.
The nearly $1 billion share purchase is part of a tender offer of as much as $3 billion from SoftBank to be extended to the company’s employees and other investors.
WeWork’s board is expected to announce this deal Tuesday, though the people warned it could be delayed.
(More to come)
Write to Maureen Farrell at maureen.farrell@wsj.com
Copyright ©2019 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8