WeWork picks up another $ 3B of SoftBank
WeWork received an additional US $ 3 billion in financing from SoftBank, not confused with SoftBank Vision. The transaction comes in the form of a note, allowing SoftBank to pay $ 3 billion to allow shares to be bought before September 2019 at $ 110 or more, ultimately leading to WeWork's $ 42 billion valuation.
In August, Softbank invested $ 1 billion in WeWork as a convertible note.
According to the Financial Times, SoftBank will pay WeWork $ 1.5 billion on January 15, 2019 and another $ 1.5 billion on April 15.
SoftBank is the largest investor in WeWork, with SoftBank Vision contributing $ 4.4 billion to the company last year.
Playing real estate in WeWork is just one aspect of the company's strategy.
More than physical ground, WeWork wants to be the central connective tissue to work in general. The company often contracts with top service providers at "full sale" prices by negotiating on behalf of its 300,000 members. In addition, WeWork has developed corporate products for large companies, such as Microsoft, who tend to sign longer and more lucrative lease contracts. In fact, these types of deals make up 29 per cent of WeWork revenues.
The biggest issue is whether WeWork can maintain its overheated growth, which seems to have been the key to its high valuation. After all, WeWork has yet to achieve profitability.
Can vision become a reality? SoftBank seems willing to bet on it.
WeWork picks up another $ 3B of SoftBank
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