CHINA’S biggest shared workspace provider Ucommune on Wednesday filed paperwork with the US securities regulator for an initial public offering (IPO), months after WeWork shelved its IPO amid severe investor concerns over its mounting losses.
The preliminary filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission did not give any details of the size of the offering. Reuters reported in October that Ucommune had filed a confidential prospectus with the SEC, citing sources.
Ucommune has shared workspaces in 200 locations across 44 cities, led by Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Los Angeles and New York, according to its website.
The company posted a net loss of 572.8 million yuan (RM337.8 mil) for the nine months ended Sept 30 on revenue of 874.6 million yuan.
In contrast, WeWork posted a net loss of over US$900 mil (RM3.75 bil) in the six months ended June 30, on revenue of US$1.54 billion, when it unveiled its finances in August in its IPO filing.
Net losses at WeWork in the third quarter ended Sept 30 more than doubled to US$1.25 billion as the money-losing shared-office operator added a record number of desks to its global network but was unable to control rising costs.
WeWork scrapped its IPO in September after it failed to excite investors who raised concerns about its burgeoning losses and a business model that involves taking long-term leases and renting out spaces for a short term.
Ucommune plans to list on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “UK”.
Haitong International and China Renaissance are lead underwriters to the IPO. – Reuters
