Meetup, the event organization platform, has been divested by WeWork and acquired by an investment group led by Kevin Ryan’s Alley Corp. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed but sources have indicated that the price was a fraction of what WeWork paid for Meetup when it acquired the company in 2017. The price tag then was a reported $156M. WeWork’s continues to divest assets as it reverts back to its core business model. “Our decision to divest Meetup aligns with WeWork’s renewed focus on the company’s core workspace business and marks a positive step forward for both WeWork and Meetup,” said Rohit Dave, Head of Corporate Development, WeWork.
Our decision to divest Meetup aligns with WeWork’s renewed focus on the company’s core workspace business and marks a positive step forward for both WeWork and Meetup – Rohit Dave
David Siegel, who came on to lead Meetup after WeWork’s purchase, will stay on as CEO and Kevin Ryan will become of the Chairman of the Board. “We are confident in the enormous potential of the business and Meetup’s mission of bringing people together in substantive ways,” said Ryan.
Meetup was founded in 2002 by Brendan McGovern, Matt Meeker, Peter Kamali, and Scott Heiferman and currently has over 49M members and its 230,000 organizers produce over 15,000 events daily in a pre-Covid 19 era. The company has built an increasing enterprise focus over the last two years. “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,” said Siegel.
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 – David Siegel, CEO of Meetup
