WeWork may buy back stake in India business for up to $1 billion
New York-headquartered shared workspace provider WeWork is holding talks to own at least 51% stake in its Indian operations, which is currently managed by billionaire property developer JituVirwani of Embassy Group through a licensing deal, people directly aware of the matter said. Virwani and his team are scheduled to meet WeWork and its co-founder Adam Neumann in the third week of this month to discuss a potential $1-billion deal, they added. The SoftBank-backed WeWork offers technology-enabled collaborative desks and offices to freelancers, entrepreneurs, small businesses and corporates. WeWork wants to take back control well before the licensing deal ends in 2021 after India emerged as one of the fastest developing markets. But international news reports on Tuesday said that WeWork’s main shareholder SoftBank was shrinking a massive $16-billion fresh commitment to just $2 billion. This could affect the buy back discussions, sources cautioned.
Tags : News/Views