Real estate veteran Sandeep Mathrani to lead WeWork turnaround as CEO

Softbank-backed WeWork named real estate industry veteran Sandeep Mathrani as its new chief executive, tasking him with turning around the embattled office-sharing startup after its botched attempt to go public last year.

Mathrani will replace WeWork co-CEOs Artie Minson and Sebastian Gunningham and report directly to Chairman Marcelo Claure, who described him as "a proven leader, with turnaround expertise in the real estate industry."

Here are some facts about the new CEO:

- Mathrani, who is in his 50s, was born in India and attended the British boarding school Eton, which he soon left to join a public school in Philadelphia

 

- He holds engineering and business degrees from Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, New Jersey

- In 2011, Mathrani took over as CEO of U.S. shopping-mall owner General Growth Properties (GCP) after it emerged from bankruptcy

- He spearheaded the sale of GGP to Brookfield Property Partners for $15 billion in 2018

- Mathrani most recently served as CEO of Brookfield Properties' retail group 

- His last-known annual compensation was about $14 million in 2018, including stock options, according to filings from Brookfield Properties