Although WeWork filed for bankruptcy protection, Adam Neumann is probably still very affluent. When he departed the company in 2019, Neumann acquired tens of millions of dollars and profited from another lucrative deal when WeWork went public through the Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC). He was paid around $770 million connected to this SPAC transaction and kept stock worth approximately $722 million at the time, though that stock has since become worthless.
Adam Neumann's ascent and subsequent fall from grace as WeWork's CEO is closely linked to the company's wild swings in value. At its peak in January 2019, WeWork was worth $47 billion, but after filing for bankruptcy protection it had plummeted to just $45 million. Neumann admitted his disappointment in a statement, saying, "It has been challenging for me to watch from the sidelines since 2019 as WeWork has failed to take advantage of a product that is more relevant today than ever before." His resignation in September 2019 followed reports of questionable self-dealings in the company's IPO filing and an unconventional management style. Investors who anticipated outsized returns were left disappointed when the IPO was withdrawn.
Despite his removal from the company, Neumann's fortunes did not suffer, and he reportedly made around $770 million in cash from the 2021 SPAC process alone. He also still held a stake in WeWork, valued at $722 million prior to its bankruptcy filing, though the extent of his current holdings are unknown. Neumann has since embarked on a new venture, Flow, which promises to address inequities in the rental-housing market. With a valuation of $1 billion and a $350 million check from Andreesen Horowitz, Neumann has described the company as a "technology-first" venture. In an October appearance on CNBC, he attributed his business success to his upbringing emphasizing the importance of living in community and in spite of their differences.
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