According to a source familiar with the talks, WeWork Inc., the long-struggling workspace rental startup, is in talks to raise hundreds of millions of dollars in finance to fund the operation.
The individual, who requested to remain anonymous because the discussions are private, claimed that Yardi Systems Inc., a Santa Barbara, California-based manufacturer of real estate software, is considering making an investment. The collaboration between WeWork and Yardi dates back at least a year.
According to the source involved with the discussions, the planned agreement, if it goes through, would enable WeWork to restructure its debt and offer a financial cushion of many years. The biggest outside investor, SoftBank Group Corp., is open to changing the conditions of WeWork’s loans but does not intend to contribute to the funding, the source said.
In late trading, shares of WeWork increased by roughly 5%. The New York Times first reported on the proposed investment.
WeWork, once among the most valued businesses in America, has been struggling for a while. Its star founder, Adam Neumann, was fired as a result of a near-collapse in 2019 and received a multibillion-dollar rescue from SoftBank. Further harm was caused by the Covid-19 outbreak, which prompted the closure of several office buildings.
Over the past year, WeWork’s stock has decreased by nearly 76%. Neumann currently oversees a startup in residential real estate and is no longer active in corporate management.
