Friday Fundings: WeWork’s Adam Neumann is Back and Snags $32 Million for New Startup

$70 Million Raised

WeWork (WE) co-founder Adam Neumann has raised $32 million from Andreessen Horowitz’s crypto-focused a16z venture capital fund, in addition to funding from other investors. The proceeds will fund his new startup Flowcarbon. Another $38 million came from the sale of Flowcarbon’s Goddess Nature Token (GNT).

Using tokens on the blockchain, the company will sell carbon credits, which companies can use to shrink their carbon footprint. The credits can also be traded on crypto exchanges. Flowcarbon gets a 2% tokenization fee when carbon credit providers sell on-chain.

Roots in WeWork Debacle

Neumann’s previous coworking venture, WeWork, was launched in 2010 in an aim to offer flexible short-term office solutions. At one time in 2019, the company had a $47 billion valuation, but stumbled leading up to its IPO. Ultimately its valuation collapsed amid a financial crisis and Neumann was ousted as CEO.

Now as the visionary sets his sights on the carbon credit play, some industry observers are raising their eyebrows. Some have argued WeWork’s near-bankruptcy can be largely blamed on Neumann.

Phoenix Rising?

With venture fund backing from a16z, Adam Neumann is back. The entrepreneur has a lot of competition in this latest entrepreneurial venture. Numerous startups are dedicated to crypto-supported regenerative finance. Toucan, Regen, Moss, and KlimaDAO all offer crypto-based carbon credit solutions.

Meanwhile, Flowcarbon is pre-registering people for its planned sale of its Goddess Nature Token. Its success may well signal a comeback for Neumann, if he can pull it off.

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