BENGALURU (Reuters) – WeWork will invest $100 million in its Indian business as the office-sharing startup looks to ride out the coronavirus crisis, which has kept people indoors and away from offices.
WeWork’s India franchise in May laid off 100 employees, or 20% of its workforce, joining a slew of firms that are cutting costs in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
WeWork India said on Friday it plans to use the proceeds, from its first ever fund raise, for “focused growth” in the Indian market over the next 36 months.
WeWork India is 100% operated by Indian real estate tycoon and billionaire Jitu Virwani’s Embassy Group.
The investment comes after WeWork India saw talks https://in.reuters.com/article/us-wework-india-funding/wework-india-seeks-new-backers-after-talks-with-local-bank-collapse-idINKBN1WP17C to raise $100 million from Indian lender ICICI Bank <ICBK.NS> break down last year, following the We Company’s botched initial public offering.
WeWork India was also in early talks last year to raise $200 million in funding from new investors, but they did not pan out.
(Reporting by Anuron Kumar Mitra and Noor Zainab Hussain in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta, Aditya Soni)
