Finance
San Francisco Was Preparing for a Flood of IPO Cash That Never Came
After share slumps, home sales are muted and party planners are cutting back
San Francisco, California
Photographer: David Paul Morris/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
It was meant to be the latest San Francisco gold rush.
After a startup boom that saw tech unicorns spend an unprecedented amount of time on the private market -- amassing lofty valuations in the process -- this was the year when dreams of IPO riches were supposed to become a reality. A city already flush with wealth prepared for a spending spree by thousands of newly minted millionaires.
Then came the drumbeat of disappointing debuts: Lyft tumbled, Uber slid, Slack sagged and WeWork’s listing plans collapsed in an epic bust.