WeWork Isn’t Worth $47 Billion Anymore, But Its Rent Bill Is
WeWork Isn’t Worth $47 Billion Anymore, But Its Rent Bill Is
(Bloomberg) -- WeWork staved off a liquidity crunch with a newly agreed rescue package from SoftBank Group Corp. But the reeling co-working startup still has a way to go before reaching financial stability, let alone profitability.
Here are five key numbers that help define one of the more dramatic business debacles in recent memory.
1. $47 billion: WeWork’s peak valuation, attained at the start of this year as SoftBank poured money into the venture, is now a fading memory. The Japanese conglomerate’s latest investment in the troubled company values it at roughly $8 billion.
It also happens to be the sum of future rent payments that WeWork’s on the hook for, thanks to its model of raising money to rent office space that it renovates and then leases to companies. That’s fueled the high cash burn rate that’s spooking investors.
2. $9.5 billion: The overall scale of the bailout announced in Tokyo Wednesday. It encompasses $5 billion in new financing, the acceleration of an existing $1.5 billion funding commitment and a tender offer worth as much as $3 billion. Much of that is also a measure of WeWork’s extended lifeline before it has to raise more funds -- or have a second go at a public offering.
3. $1.2 billion: The amount that Adam Neumann, founder and former chief executive officer, is said to be walking away with after this deal. Neumann’s entitled to sell roughly $1 billion of stock to SoftBank, and he’ll also receive a $185 million consulting fee, people familiar with the matter have said.
4. Thousands: Neumann’s generous exit package has caused outrage among former colleagues facing job cuts, expected to number in the thousands.
5. Two: As part of Neumann’s settlement, he’s said to get to name two members of an expanded board of directors for WeWork. He will become a board observer and, through that pair of appointments, contribute to steering the company.
To contact the reporter on this story: Vlad Savov in Tokyo at vsavov5@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Edwin Chan at echan273@bloomberg.net
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