Skadden, Simpson Thacher Advise on Long-Awaited WeWork IPO
The shared workspace giant reported a loss of $1.62 billion between 2016 and 2018 as part of the filing.
August 14, 2019 at 03:30 PM
3 minute read
WeWork offices in Tysons, Virginia. (Photo: Diego M. Radzinschi/ALM)
The We Company, WeWork’s parent company, finally took the IPO plunge Wednesday, in the process reporting 2016 to 2018 revenue of $1.82 billion and losses of $1.62 billion. The company would be traded under the symbol “We.”
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom advised the co-working pioneer and real estate giant on its filing, with New York capital markets partner Ryan Dzierniejko heading a team that included partners Graham Robinson and Laura Knoll in Boston.
Simpson Thacher & Bartlett partners John Ericson and Roxane Reardon in Boston advised an underwriter group that includes JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, Barclays Capital, Citigroup Global Markets, Credit Suisse Securities (USA), HSBC Securities (USA), UBS Securities and Wells Fargo Securities.
Skadden has advised WeWork in the past, notably representing it during Japanese telecommunications company SoftBank’s $4.4 billion capital infusion in July 2017.
WeWork, which has been valued as high as $47 billion in the private market, has seen massive revenue growth over the past several years. During the first half of 2019 the company reported revenue of $1.54 billion, almost outpacing their total revenue from the prior two years. But the losses have mounted as well as the company attempts to rapidly expand. It reported losses in the first half of 2019 of $689.7 million.
The company’s Wednesday filing revealed some interesting numbers around its expansion. According to the filing, WeWork now has 528 locations in 111 cities around the world with a total membership of over half a million.
The growth hasn’t only been geographical. The We Company umbrella has launched several different subsidiary companies as well, ranging from “wellness experience” company Rise by We to WeGrow elementary schools to the dorm-like WeLive communal living facilities.
The IPO underwriter group is kicking in up to $6 billion in the planned offering. Sources told The Wall Street Journal that the banks are asking We Company to raise $4 billion from the public equity market to continue to fund its growth.
The company, based in New York, is styled after Silicon Valley tech startups despite its significant real estate focus. Like many tech upstarts, it has been wracked with culture issues as it has grown, ranging from accusations of a toxic culture to sexual harassment to ageism.
Nonetheless, the company is shooting for a September debut, hoping to capitalize on markets that are near record highs and that global indicators say might not stay there.
Read More
MoFo and Skadden Advise on $4.4B SoftBank – WeWork Deal
WeWork Chief Legal Officer Steps Into Co-President Role as Company Increases Global Focus
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2025 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View All
Greenberg Traurig Litigation Co-Chair Returning After Three Years as US Attorney
3 minute read
Blank Rome Snags Two Labor and Employment Partners From Stevens & Lee
4 minute read
12-Partner Team 'Surprises' Atlanta Firm’s Leaders With Exit to Launch New Reed Smith Office
4 minute read
After Breakaway From FisherBroyles, Pierson Ferdinand Bills $75M in First Year
5 minute readTrending Stories
- 1Reviewing Judge Merchan's Unconditional Discharge
- 2With New Civil Jury Selection Rule, Litigants Should Carefully Weigh Waiver Risks
- 3Young Lawyers Become Old(er) Lawyers
- 4Caught In the In Between: A Legal Roadmap for the Sandwich Generation
- 5Top 10 Developments, Lessons, and Reminders of 2024
Who Got The Work
J. Brugh Lower of Gibbons has entered an appearance for industrial equipment supplier Devco Corporation in a pending trademark infringement lawsuit. The suit, accusing the defendant of selling knock-off Graco products, was filed Dec. 18 in New Jersey District Court by Rivkin Radler on behalf of Graco Inc. and Graco Minnesota. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Zahid N. Quraishi, is 3:24-cv-11294, Graco Inc. et al v. Devco Corporation.
Who Got The Work
Rebecca Maller-Stein and Kent A. Yalowitz of Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer have entered their appearances for Hanaco Venture Capital and its executives, Lior Prosor and David Frankel, in a pending securities lawsuit. The action, filed on Dec. 24 in New York Southern District Court by Zell, Aron & Co. on behalf of Goldeneye Advisors, accuses the defendants of negligently and fraudulently managing the plaintiff's $1 million investment. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Vernon S. Broderick, is 1:24-cv-09918, Goldeneye Advisors, LLC v. Hanaco Venture Capital, Ltd. et al.
Who Got The Work
Attorneys from A&O Shearman has stepped in as defense counsel for Toronto-Dominion Bank and other defendants in a pending securities class action. The suit, filed Dec. 11 in New York Southern District Court by Bleichmar Fonti & Auld, accuses the defendants of concealing the bank's 'pervasive' deficiencies in regards to its compliance with the Bank Secrecy Act and the quality of its anti-money laundering controls. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian, is 1:24-cv-09445, Gonzalez v. The Toronto-Dominion Bank et al.
Who Got The Work
Crown Castle International, a Pennsylvania company providing shared communications infrastructure, has turned to Luke D. Wolf of Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani to fend off a pending breach-of-contract lawsuit. The court action, filed Nov. 25 in Michigan Eastern District Court by Hooper Hathaway PC on behalf of The Town Residences LLC, accuses Crown Castle of failing to transfer approximately $30,000 in utility payments from T-Mobile in breach of a roof-top lease and assignment agreement. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Susan K. Declercq, is 2:24-cv-13131, The Town Residences LLC v. T-Mobile US, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Wilfred P. Coronato and Daniel M. Schwartz of McCarter & English have stepped in as defense counsel to Electrolux Home Products Inc. in a pending product liability lawsuit. The court action, filed Nov. 26 in New York Eastern District Court by Poulos Lopiccolo PC and Nagel Rice LLP on behalf of David Stern, alleges that the defendant's refrigerators’ drawers and shelving repeatedly break and fall apart within months after purchase. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Joan M. Azrack, is 2:24-cv-08204, Stern v. Electrolux Home Products, Inc.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250
