It’s a ‘merger’, says CEO as New York start-up WeWork makes play for China co-working crown with Naked Hub deal
Acquisition could be worth US$400 million and adds co-working spaces in Shanghai, Beijing, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Australia and London to WeWork’s portfolio
New York-based co-working start-up WeWork “merged” with Chinese rival Naked Hub for its local knowledge and technological strength, Adam Neumann, its co-founder and chief executive, said in Shanghai on Thursday.
“One plus one equals 11,” said Neumann, stressing that the “merger” would make WeWork “substantially larger and stronger”, as Naked Hub had a larger local technology team and more experience in local market.
“We do not consider it an acquisition, we consider it a merger … they are now going to be our partners for a very long time,” he said at the China launch of “Powered by We”, a programme that will deliver tailor-made design and operational services to big corporate clients in their own office space. The programme is already available globally.
WeWork, counted among the world’s most valuable start-ups at about US$20 billion, will pay about US$400 million for the three-year-old Chinese business, according to Bloomberg. The deal adds co-working spaces in Shanghai, Beijing, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Australia and London to its portfolio, and puts it on a collision course with the China market leader, Ucommune.
Neumann said the deal with Naked Hub would allow WeWork to deploy Powered by We “twice as fast”. He declined to answer questions about the value of the deal and if whether Naked Hub would keep running independently.