Business

WeWork may seek IPO valuation as low as $10 billion

WeWork’s parent company may seek a valuation as low as $10 billion in its looming public debut, a dramatic discount to the $47 billion valuation it achieved in January, people familiar with the matter said Friday.

The deliberations indicate that WeWork does not feel confident that the corporate governance changes it unveiled on Friday will be enough to woo investors concerned about its lack of a path to profitability.

The sources cautioned that no decision has been made and asked not to be identified because the matter is confidential. WeWork did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The We Company said Friday it has curbed the voting power of founder and CEO Adam Neumann, part of changes to its corporate governance aimed at reviving demand for its planned initial public offering.

The office space sharing startup said it was making the changes “in response to market feedback” as the company considers seeking a valuation in the IPO for less than half what it was worth just nine months ago in the face of lukewarm demand.

Loss-making The We Company said Neumann’s superior voting shares will decrease to 10 votes per share from 20, it said in a regulatory filing, though he will still retain majority control of the company.

Neumann will also give the company any profits he receives from real estate deals he has entered into with The We Company. He will also limit his ability to sell shares in the second and third years after the IPO to no more than 10 percent of his stock.

No member of Neumann’s family will be on the company’s board and any successor will be selected by the board, scrapping a plan for his wife, co-founder Rebekah Neumann, who is chief brand and impact officer, to help pick the successor.

It disclosed it will list shares on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange. It plans to complete the IPO as early as this month.

This is the second effort to repair damage done to its image among investors, after it earlier this month added a new member, Frances Frei, to its all-male board and said Neumann would return a $5.9 million payment for use of the trademarked word “We.”