Office-sharing startup Wujie Space raises $14m in A-round financing

China's office-sharing startup Wujie Space announced on Tuesday that it received A+round financing of about 100 million yuan ($14.47 million), led by investment institution ChinaEquity Group and followed by Matrix Partners China.

Founder and CEO of Wujie Wan Liushuo said the company would construct more advanced offices and launch the new mobile office project — W-Studio.

Gao Wenxin, leader of W-Studio project, said the company would customize more than 100 intelligent living rooms in Beijing which customers can select and order to rent through the W-Studio app client.

Wujie Space, founded in 2015, announced a decision to acquire another joint office company, Fourwork, in early 2017, after which Wujie owned 13 spaces in Beijing and Tianjin with a total area of 30,000 square meters, comprising more than 5,000 seats. More than 300 startups or teams have settled in.

For Wujie's eight spaces in Beijing, customers need to pay 1,650 or 1,850 yuan for each seat per month to rent the offices, including seats, living rooms, game rooms, meditation rooms, book cabinet and gym. Other services provided include training, public relations, headhunting and financial services, according to its official website.

Wang Chaoyong, president of ChinaEquity Group, said: "Joint office is more than the physical spaces. The activeness of communities in the offices and the users' adhesiveness are also important."

Matrix Partners China, once made the angel-round investment to Wujie in 2015, participated in the new round of financing.

Wujie also announced the cooperation with Chinese Academy of Sciences in commercialization of research findings, technology transfer, regional collaboration and projects' incubation, according to Wu Guoqing, deputy director of financial technology development center of University of Chinese Academy of Sciences.

"Shared economy developed fast under the nation's call of promoting internet Plus and innovation and entrepreneurship. Joint office, as an emerging new type of business in entrepreneurs' services, could help promote innovation and entrepreneurship," said Wu.