What WeWork Says About Pvt. Market Valuations

At this point, it seems difficult to add a lot to the discussion about WeWork and its
rather creative approach to accounting, governance, and the truth. We are not stock
analysts, after all. Still, we have long been chroniclers of the great parade that represents
the economy and the financial markets. While it is always difficult to place current events
in a proper historical context in real time, we believe WeWork will likely be a financial
story for the ages. We don't want to add to the cacophony of chattering classes on the
specific absurdities of the company's proposed IPO or to overstate its historical
importance. Still, it's hard not to believe that the company's decision to pull its offering –
at least temporarily - isn't telling us more than simply something about the cupidity of its
founders and bankers. The episode may finally be giving the markets some indication that
we have reached the apogee of private sector valuations, even in a world in which perfectly
rational human beings are willing to pay heavily indebted sovereign countries for the
privilege of lending them money. (NUTS!)