WeWork to acquire Singapore's VC-backed Spacemob
US-based co-working space operator WeWork plans to acquire Singapore-based counterpart Spacemob for an undisclosed sum. The capital will come from a $500 million investment pool established to fuel WeWork's expansion in Southeast Asia and South Korea.
Two weeks ago, the company raised $500 million from a Hony Capital and SoftBank-led consortium to set up a dedicated Chinese unit. Prior to that, WeWork formed a joint venture with SoftBank to grow its business in Japan.
Spacemob's entire team will transfer to WeWork under the latest deal. Its founder and CEO, Turochas Fuad, will become managing director of Southeast Asia for WeWork, overseeing the company’s expansion in the region. Meanwhile, Matt Shampine, WeWork’s head of marketing and revenue for Asia, has been appointed as general manager of Korea.
“Today's announcement reaffirms WeWork's commitment to scaling our business across Asia. We are amazed and humbled by the response to WeWork so far and look forward to continuing to build our vibrant and diverse community in the rapidly evolving region,” Miguel McKelvey, WeWork’s co-founder, said in a statement.
Founded in early 2016, Spacemob currently has two co-working spaces in Singapore and one in Indonesia, with more locations in Indonesia and Vietnam scheduled to open soon. In November, the company raised $5.5 million in a seed funding round led by Vertex Venture Holdings, with participation from Indonesia’s Alpha JWC Ventures and several angel investors.
WeWork provides shared office space for entrepreneurs, freelancers, and large corporations in more than 155 locations in 50 cities across 15 countries.
Co-working spaces are proliferating in Asia as companies – from multinationals to start-ups – opt for more flexible real estate arrangements. Several players have entered into mergers over the past year in order to build scale. Last month, China-focused Naked Hub joined forces with Singapore-based JustCo to fend off competition from WeWork.
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