MITSUBISHI ESTATE CO., LTD. WeWork has sent a shockwave through the office real estate sector globally with its model of taking on long-term leases and renting them out to corporate clients on a flexible short-term basis.
Its funky, Silicon Valley style co-working environment have proved a hit, transforming it into a major player in the space of a couple of years.
The model, however, has raised skepticism among investors, who are concerned that WeWork could be left holding substantial liabilities in a downturn as clients evaporate.
Flexible office providers have dominated leasing in major gateway cities, most notably London, New York and San Francisco, a sign of growing demand by companies and not just the start-ups and entrepreneurs that put coworking on the map.
Below is a comparison on some of the top office space providers in the market and how they compare on some key metrics:
- WeWork (as of June 30)
Total liabilities: $24.6 billion
Total square feet: Did not report square footage it manages
Footprint: 528 locations in 111 cities across 29 countries
Revenue: $1.54 billion (first half of 2019)
- Boston Properties Inc (as of June 30):
Total liabilities: $13.25 billion
Total square feet: 50.9 million
Total properties: 193
Footprint: United States
Market Cap: $19.67 billion
Revenue: $733.7 million
- British Land Company Plc (as of March 31 - for H1, 2019):
Total liabilities: 3.57 billion pounds ($4.30 billion)
Total square feet: 22 million
Total properties: 127
Footprint: United Kingdom
Market Cap: 4.41 billion pounds
Revenue: 904 million pounds
- IWG Plc (as of June 30 - for H1, 2019):
Total liabilities: 298.1 million pounds
Total square feet: 50 million
Total properties: More than 300
Revenue: 1.30 billion pounds ($1.57 billion)
Footprint: 18 countries
Market Cap: 3.72 billion pounds
Cash-in-hand: 385.1 million pounds (Cash flow before net growth capital expenditure, share repurchases & dividend)
- Mitsubishi Estate Co Ltd (as of Aug. 6)
Total liabilities: 77.26 billion yen ($730.04 million)
Total square: Not available
Total properties: Not available
Revenue: 265.88 billion yen
Cash-in-hand: 243.34 billion yen (at the end of the year)
Footprint: Japan, U.S., U.K., China, Singapore
(Reporting by C Nivedita, Vibhuti Sharma and Soundarya Jayaraman in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur)
