FILE PHOTO: Adam Neumann, CEO of WeWork, speaks to guests during the TechCrunch Disrupt event in Manhattan, in New York City, NY, U.S. May 15, 2017. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz/File Photo
September 24, 2019
By Joshua Franklin and Anirban Sen
NEW YORK/BENGALURU (Reuters) – WeWork co-founder Adam Neumann has agreed to resign as chief executive of the U.S. office-sharing company but will remain as non-executive chairman, bowing to pressure from some of his investors, people familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.
The decision, taken at a board meeting on Tuesday, follows a challenge to Neumann’s authority by his biggest investors, including Japan’s SoftBank Group Corp <9984.T>, venture capital firm Benchmark Capital and Chinese private equity firm Hony Capital, the sources said.
The investors amassed a majority on We Company’s seven-member board to push for Neumann’s resignation as CEO, one of the sources added.
Artie Minson, currently chief financial officer of WeWork parent We Company, and Sebastian Gunningham, a vice chairman for the New York-based start-up, will become co-chief executives, the sources said.
The leadership changes come after We Company postponed its initial public offering (IPO) last week following push-back from perspective investors, not just over its widening losses, but also over Neumann’s unusually firm grip on the company.
This was a blow for SoftBank, which was hoping for We Company’s IPO to bolster its fortunes as it seeks to woo investors for its second $108 billion Vision Fund. It invested in We Company at a $47 billion valuation in January.
We Company declined to comment.
(Reporting by Joshua Franklin in New York and Anirban Sen in Bengaluru; Additional reporting by Greg Roumeliotis in New York; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Dan Grebler)
