Flex office provider WeWork began trading on the New York Stock Exchange today following the closing of its merger with special acquisitions company, BowX Acquisition Corp
The combined company now operates as WeWork Inc. and began trading under the ticker symbol WE on October 21, 2021.
“Today is a testament to the determination of our company to not only transform our business, but also to adapt and deliver the options that today’s workforce demands,” said Sandeep Mathrani, CEO of WeWork.
“As companies around the world reimagine their workplace, WeWork is uniquely positioned to offer the space and services that can power solutions built around flexibility. Providing employers and landlords around the world with our holistic offering of space-as-a-service, All Access and workplace management technology will enable WeWork to lead the market in mainstream adoption of flexible space.”
The IPO comes two years after WeWork’s first offering plan collapsed over concerns about its business model and behavior of founder and then-CEO Adam Neumann.
Its value fell from $47 billion when the Japanese conglomerate Softbank bailed the company out to $9 billion following the BowX merger announcement in March, 2021.
Today, it announced sequential monthly increases in revenue and occupancy in the third quarter of 2021 following a multi-layered effort to rein in costs, reduce its leasing obligations and develop new revenue streams.
Q3 2021 preliminary total revenue was $658 million, an increase of approximately 10 percent compared to Q2 2021 revenue of $593 million. Across consolidated operations, the company said total occupancy continued to increase to 60 percent at the end of Q3 2021, up from 52 percent at the end of Q2 2021. Consolidated gross desk sales totaled 154,000 in Q3 2021 representing approximately 9.2 million square feet sold. Consolidated new desk sales totaled 84,000 in Q3 2021.
WeWork said it has also begun to realize new revenue opportunities by digitizing its real estate offerings and productizing its existing technology.
As of Q3 2021, All Access, its pay-as-you-go or subscription-based product, and other virtual memberships have reached 32,000. The company has begun to build out its proprietary workplace management platform, WeWork Workplace, to offer landlords and members the ability to manage flex space across their portfolios and recently announced strategic partnerships with Hudson’s Bay Company, Cushman & Wakefield and Ivanhoé Cambridge.
Marcelo Claure, executive chairman of WeWork and COO of SoftBank, said, “SoftBank is proud to support WeWork on this important day, a day that recognizes years of hard work and executing on our vision. As the way we live and work has fundamentally changed. WeWork is leading one of the biggest disruptions in commercial real estate with a workspace solution that has never been more in demand. This milestone is just the beginning and we look forward to continuing to support WeWork on its journey.”
PJT Partners served as sole financial advisor and Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP served as legal counsel to WeWork. UBS Investment Bank served as sole financial and capital markets advisor to BowX. Cooley LLP served as legal counsel to BowX. UBS Investment Bank and PJT Partners acted as joint placement agents with respect to the private placement. Paul Hastings LLP served as placement agent counsel and Morrison & Foerster LLP served as legal counsel to SoftBank Group.
