WeWork, a New York-based coworking start-up, entered Southeast Asia two years ago, following the acquisition of its Singapore-based rival Spacemob. It was Ole Ruch, managing director at WeWork, who introduced Spacemob founder Turochas "T" Fuad to WeWork founders Miguel McKelvey and Adam Neumann in New York and thus, began the strategic expansion into the region. The company, last valued at US$47 billion, began its regional expansion with a handful of offices in Singapore and Jakarta but has since entered Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh City, Kuala Lumpur and Manila. In Jakarta, WeWork owns four upmarket coworking spaces mainly catered to start-ups and multinationals while its local competitor, Go-Rework, also owns four spaces in the city following a merger late last year. During a visit to Jakarta, WeWork regional managing director Turochas Fuad and cofounder Miguel met with The Jaka...