US-based work space provider WeWork has raised $430m in a series F round co-led by conglomerate Legend Holdings and its private equity subsidiary Hony Capital, the Wall Street Journal reported yesterday.
The funding was secured at a $16bn valuation, WeWork executives told the WSJ. Fortune had earlier reported WeWork is in the process of raising $780m, citing documents filed in Delaware.
WeWork disclosed Legend and Hony’s involvement yesterday in a blog post, adding that the round also included “existing shareholders and new partners”.
Founded in 2010, WeWork offers flexible, communal workspaces as well as dedicated office and desk space to companies and individuals for monthly rates. The spaces are rented from landlords and essentially sublet to a revolving set of workers.
The company is currently present in six countries across North America, Europe and Israel but plans to shortly expand to markets including China, India, Australia, Mexico and Korea.
The funding follows a $434m series E round closed in July 2015 that featured Fidelity Management and Research, JP Morgan Investment Management, T. Rowe Price, clients of the Wellington Management Company, Goldman Sachs and Benchmark Capital, valuing WeWork at $10bn.
WeWork has now raised more than $1.3bn altogether from investors also including Harvard Management Company, the investment subsidiary of the eponymous university.
John Zhao, Hony’s CEO, said: “Not only does WeWork have one of the largest addressable markets I have ever seen, but the quality of its execution and fit for the Chinese culture is unparalleled. Our investment in WeWork is both strategic and obvious.”
– Photo courtesy of WeWork