WeWork filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Monday, ending months of speculation that the office-sharing company was on the edge of collapse and marking a spectacular fall for a firm once valued at nearly $50 billion. The news signals the end of what has been the company's yearslong, tumultuous, cash-burning quest to make its luxe workplace subleasing model work.
By the time the company first tried to go public in 2019, it was valued at $47 billion, but that effort was scrapped after investors balked at its high debt levels, massive losses and how quickly it was burning through cash. Investors also became fed up with the exorbitant spending and erratic behavior from co-founder and then-CEO Adam Neumann, who was later ousted but was handed an enormous golden parachute to leave.
SoftBank later sought to claw back its offer to Neumann, who then sued, resulting in the renegotiation of the deal that was ultimately settled to make way for WeWork's public debut. The firm finally became a publicly traded company in 2021 via a special purpose acquisition company deal, but was never able to turn a profit.