WeWork, an American real estate company has announced it has agreed to sell its social networking platform, Meetup which was designed to connect people in person. The company has confirmed that the subsidiary is being sold to AlleyCorp and other private investors for an undisclosed amount. In 2017, WeWork had paid $156 million to acquire Meetup.
According to Meetup, it has operated for more than 2 years as a subsidiary of WeWork, and it will continue to operate by divesting itself from its parent company. The platform also disclosed that it is currently serving for 49 million registered members and over 230,000 organizers who create around 15,000 in-person events on daily basis.
Meetup has also declared that it will continue to operate as Meetup Pro which is being used by more than 1,500 clients including Google, Adobe, Microsoft Azure, Looker, IBM, and Twitter among others.
In the latest deal, it has been decided that Kevin Ryan, the Founder of AlleyCorp will join Meetup as the Chairman of the Board and David Siegel will remain the CEO and board member at the firm.
In an announcement, WeWork has confirmed that AlleyCorp will lead the acquisition followed by few ‘accomplished technology executives’ with the participation of other ‘mission-driven private funds’.
David Siegel, the CEO of Meetup states, “This acquisition provides the long-term capital to ensure that Meetup focuses on what is most important: the organizers who make Meetup successful, our passionate members, and our dedicated employees.” He adds, “We are excited to continue on our mission of empowering personal growth through real human connections, and I’m happy to have brought in a team of smart investors who share and support the same values.”
