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Sharing Economy

SoftBank's Son says WeWork is his 'next Alibaba'

Entrepreneur bets $1bn more on office sharer's network-building vision

A WeWork location in Tokyo. The co-working company's offices are laid out with an eye toward encouraging collaboration. (Photo by Minoru Satake)

TOKYO -- Japan's SoftBank Group has agreed to invest an additional $1 billion in shared-office company WeWork, where SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son sees the potential for a repeat of his lucrative bet on Alibaba Group Holding.

The funding comes in the form of convertible bonds, according to WeWork. This follows a $4.4 billion investment, announced last year, by SoftBank and the Saudi-backed SoftBank Vision Fund. SoftBank and WeWork have also expanded the co-working business into Japan through a 50-50 joint venture.

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