Wework founder seeks to buy it out of bankruptcy
ADAM NEUMANN, the founder of the office provider Wework who quit after a botched attempt to take it public, has offered to make a sensational return by buying the business out of bankruptcy.
Mr Neumann, 44, has been seeking to acquire Wework with support from Dan Loeb, the billionaire hedge fund investor, since December, according to a letter from his lawyer. Wework declared bankruptcy in November after the rise of home working meant it was unable to keep up with lease payments.
Mr Neumann claims to have been ignored by lawyers overseeing the bankruptcy, meaning he is unable to make a full offer to buy the company.
In a letter to Wework’s bankruptcy advisers, Mr Neumann’s lawyer, Alex Spiro, said: “We write to express our dismay with Wework’s lack of engagement even to provide information to my clients in what was intended to be a value-maximising transaction for all stakeholders. Although my clients have attempted since December 2023 to obtain information necessary for an offer to purchase the company or its assets, they still do not have access to that information.”
The letter said Mr Neumann had previously offered to arrange up to $1bn (£795m) in financing for Wework and had offered to make a “substantial” investment in the company shortly before it went bankrupt.
It said that Mr Neumann’s “management expertise” could significantly boost Wework’s value, adding: “Wework should at least educate itself about that potential and not preclude itself from maximising value.”
Mr Spiro confirmed Mr Neumann’s interest, which was first reported by The New York Times.
Mr Neumann had sought to take Wework public at a valuation of up to $47bn but endured a dramatic fall from grace as investors began questioning the company’s worth and its chief executive’s impulsive behaviour.
He quit in 2019 and has since launched a start-up called Flow Global.
A Wework spokesman said: “Wework is an extraordinary company. As such, we receive expressions of interest from external parties on a regular basis. We and our advisers always review those approaches with a view to acting in the best interests of the company.”