WeWork Inc. moved into positive territory on Thursday, as shares climbed 7.9% to $11.20 in their first day of public trading. The company has completed its previously announced merger with the special purpose acquisition company BowX Acquisition Corp. SoftBank, which has taken an $8.2 billion write-down for its investment in the company, currently holds a 56% equity stake in WeWork. As announced in March, the merger between BowX and WeWork valued the company at about $9 billion and provided $1.3 billion of cash to WeWork, which rents out office space to gig workers. WeWork executive chairman Marcelo Claure said SoftBank “is proud to support WeWork” and that the company “is leading one of the biggest disruptions in commercial real estate with a workspace solution that has never been more in demand.”
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