SoftBank is in talks to take control of WeWork as the lossmaking property group faces a cash crunch that threatens its solvency, according to multiple people briefed on the matter.
The Japanese telecoms-to-technology group has readied a financing package to pump several billion dollars into WeWork parent the We Company. The proposed deal would give SoftBank more than a 50 per cent stake in the company, but it was unclear if the group — which is WeWork’s largest backer — would repurchase all of its outstanding stock.
The move would further sideline WeWork’s controversial co-founder Adam Neumann weeks after he was forced to give up the chief executive role following the company’s decision to abort its initial public offering.