Embassy Group aims to list WeWork India, a coworking office platform, on domestic stock exchanges within the next 18 months. This move comes after Embassy acquired WeWork’s 27% stake in the Indian entity for around ₹700 crore. Following the acquisition, Embassy will own 100% of WeWork India. They plan to sell a 40% stake to Enam Group, A91 Partners, CaratLane founder Mithun Sacheti, and others for ₹1,200 crore.
After the divestment, Embassy will retain a 60% stake, including 5% as Esops, before considering an initial public offering (IPO). Sources mentioned that WeWork India is performing well in terms of revenue and profitability, aiming to start the IPO process by the year’s end. Both transactions require approvals from the Competition Commission of India (CCI) and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
WeWork is currently finalizing these transactions, expecting completion soon. While WeWork will exit entirely, WeWork India will retain the brand by paying a franchise fee of about 2% to the global coworking major.
WeWork India declined to comment on queries from ET. Previously, on November 14, ET reported that WeWork India was in the process of repurchasing the stake held by WeWork after the US company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in October.
WeWork India, one of WeWork’s fastest-growing affiliates outside the US, aims for a revenue target of ₹1,800 crore for the fiscal year ended March 31. In the first six months of FY24, the company reported a 40% year-on-year revenue growth at ₹831 crore. Ebitda surged 90% to ₹532 crore during the period.
WeWork India plans to add about 1.5-2 million sq ft of office space annually across seven cities and 54 locations where it currently operates. With a member base of over 70,000 and more than 90,000 desks totaling 8 million sq ft, approximately 80% of its member base comprises enterprises, while the remainder includes clients from SMBs, entrepreneurs, and startups.