WeWork's Bankruptcy: From Valuable Startup to Office Bust

WeWork, the once highly valued US startup backed by SoftBank, has filed for bankruptcy protection after its office-sharing business model faltered. SoftBank, which owns about 60% of WeWork, has invested billions of dollars in the company's turnaround but now acknowledges that bankruptcy is necessary to renegotiate its expensive leases. The filing includes a restructuring support agreement with 92% of lenders agreeing to convert their debt into equity, eliminating $3 billion of debt. WeWork expects to continue business normally outside of the US and Canada. The company's profitability has been elusive due to costly leases and the trend of remote work. WeWork's assets are listed at $15.06 billion with liabilities of $18.66 billion.