(Bloomberg) -- WeWork co-founder Adam Neumann's family office explored investing in Barneys New York Inc. during the retailer's recent bankruptcy, according to people with knowledge of the matter.
166 2nd Financial Services, which is led by former Soros Fund Management executive Ilan Stern, reviewed helping finance a bid for the storied U.S. luxury department store operator, said the people, who requested anonymity because the talks are private.
The family office was part of a consortium led by Sam Ben-Avraham, an early investor in WeWork, according to one of the people. Representatives for Neumann and Ben-Avraham declined to comment.
Ben-Avraham's offer, linked to the #SaveBarneys hashtag, failed to qualify in the retailer's bankruptcy case. Instead, Authentic Brands Group LLC purchased Barneys in a deal approved earlier this month.
Neumann's family office, which oversees the wealth he has amassed since co-founding WeWork in 2010, is named for an apartment where he once lived with his wife, Rebekah Neumann. In addition to various properties in the Hamptons, Manhattan and Westchester, The billionaire has invested in accommodation and co-working provider Selina, U.K. energy startup Faraday Grid Ltd. and anti-aging startup Life Biosciences.
The 40 year-old stepped down as WeWork's chief executive officer and chairman after a failed initial public offering forced the lossmaking company into a rescue package from SoftBank Group Corp. As part of SoftBank's bailout, Neumann will receive a $185 million consulting fee, a loan of $500 million and can sell up to $970 million in stock as part of a broader tender offer, Bloomberg has reported.
To contact the reporters on this story: Gillian Tan in New York at gtan129@bloomberg.net;Eliza Ronalds-Hannon in New York at eronaldshann@bloomberg.net;Lauren Coleman-Lochner in New York at llochner@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Alan Goldstein at agoldstein5@bloomberg.net, ;Shannon D. Harrington at sharrington6@bloomberg.net, Pierre Paulden, Michael J. Moore
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