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HONG KONG: Tencent<\/a> is resetting its M&A strategy to put more focus on buying majority stakes mainly in overseas gaming companies, as the tech giant eyes global expansion to offset slowing growth at home in China, people with direct knowledge of the matter said.
Tencent Holding Ltd<\/a> has for years invested in hundreds of up-and-coming businesses, mainly in the onshore market. It has typically acquired minority stakes and stayed invested as a passive financial investor.
However, it is now aggressively seeking to own majority or even controlling stakes in overseas targets, notably in gaming assets in Europe, the four people with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters.
The shift comes as the world's number one gaming firm by revenue is counting on global markets for its future growth, which requires a strong portfolio of chart-topping games, the sources aid.
Tencent's new strategy indicates how China's tech titans are looking to emerge from the regulatory shadows after two years of crackdown and uncertainty that weighed on their sales at home and triggered a massive selloff in their stocks.
Apart from the core gaming sector, Tencent is also looking to snap up global assets, in particular in Europe, related to the so-called metaverse, said one of the sources and another source with direct knowledge of the matter.
The people declined to be identified as the information was private.
Tencent told Reuters the company had been investing abroad for a long time - \"long before any new regulations\" in China. It looks for \"innovative companies with talented management teams\" and gives them room to grow independently, the company added, without elaborating.
Tencent's pursuit for bigger stakes in gaming firms comes as other tech giants such as Microsoft<\/a>, Sony and Amazon are snapping up gaming assets and related intellectual properties, said three of the sources.
Tencent's chief strategy officer, James Mitchell, said on a post-earnings call in August the company would remain active in acquiring new game studios overseas.
\"In terms of the game business, our strategy is ... to focus on developing our capabilities especially in the international<\/a> market,\" he said. \"We will continue to be very active in terms of acquiring new game studios outside China.\"
PURSUIT OF BIGGER STAKES
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Tencent's growing focus on overseas assets and markets is in sharp contrast to its much slower dealmaking pace at home since the regulatory clampdowns intensified, and the divestment of a clutch of domestic portfolio companies.
From 2015 to 2020, the owner of China's number one messaging app WeChat 150 investments at home totalling $75 billion, compared to 102 deals worth $33 billion in overseas markets, according to Refinitiv data.
Tencent in August reported its first ever quarterly top-line fall, partially hurt by a lack of game approvals in China and regulations that limit playing time. Revenue from online games decreased both at home and abroad by 1%.
Its Hong Kong-listed shares have sunk some 60% in the last two years.
Against that backdrop, Tencent has barely made investments in China this year versus 27 deals worth $3 billion offshore, Refinitiv data show. It has been reducing its portfolio partly to placate regulators and also to book some hefty profits, sources have told Reuters.
\"We believe Tencent will continue to make reasonable investments to acquire quality gaming content and talents and deepen partnerships with top-tier studios worldwide in order to step up its investments and presence in overseas markets,\" said Citi analysts in a report in early September.
Tencent's pursuit of bigger stakes in its existing gaming portfolio or new targets would give the company a bigger say in such firms' businesses and also help it secure the intellectual property rights of popular games, said the four sources.
Also, with Beijing strictly restricting game approvals at home and still suspending approvals for games of foreign IPs, Tencent is forced to move towards gaining control of foreign game companies and their IPs, said the four sources.
Tencent in September raised its stake in Ubisoft<\/a> in a deal that made the Chinese firm the single biggest shareholder of the top French games developer, with a stake of 11% which can be further increased to as much as 17%.
REGIONAL HUB
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The Ubisoft deal comes just after deep-pocketed Tencent in June acquired Copenhagen-based Sybo Games, the developer of hit mobile game Subway Surfer, and in August took a 16.25% stake in Japan's \"Elden Ring\" developer FromSoftware.
Last year, Tencent said it would take over British videogame developer Sumo in a $1.3 billion deal - one of its largest foreign transactions since the regulatory crackdown in late 2020.
In Europe, except for its purchase of majority stake in \"Clash of Clans\" mobile game maker Supercell for $8.6 billion in 2016, Tencent has for years mostly cut minority deals including its purchase of 9% of British gaming firm Frontier Developments.
Elsewhere, Tencent also seeks to increase its investment in and make deeper forays into Southeast Asia as it sees the region - home to 650 million people - as having potential to replicate the success of China's internet<\/a> boom, said two of the sources.
China's largest social network firm already has a regional hub for Southeast Asia in Singapore that houses its international game publishing business.
Since last year, the company has repeatedly emphasized that it is aiming to have half of its gaming revenue coming from outside China, from about 25% now. In doing so, it in December launched a new publishing brand called Level Infinite in Singapore.
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腾讯的焦点转移到多数交易,海外游戏资产增长源
腾讯控股有限公司多年来投资了数以百计的积极进取的企业,主要在在岸市场。它通常收购少数股权,投资作为一个被动的金融投资者。
香港:腾讯重置其并购战略,把更多的注意力放在收购多数股权主要在海外游戏公司,作为全球科技巨头的眼睛扩张来抵消在中国国内经济增长放缓,人们有直接了解的人士说。
腾讯控股有限公司多年来投资了数以百计的积极进取的企业,主要在在岸市场。它通常收购少数股权,投资作为一个被动的金融投资者。
然而,现在积极地寻求自己的大部分甚至控股权在海外目标,在欧洲,尤其是在游戏资产问题的四人直接参与对路透表示。
转变之际,世界上最好的游戏公司收入指望全球市场对其未来的增长,这就需要一个强大的组合高居榜首的游戏援助来源。
腾讯的新战略表明中国的科技巨头正在摆脱监管阴影经过两年的镇压和不确定性,国内销售承压,引发大规模抛售他们的股票。
除了核心游戏领域,腾讯也希望收购全球资产,尤其是在欧洲,所谓metaverse有关,其中一位消息人士说,另一个直接的来源。
人们不愿透露姓名的信息是私人的。
腾讯对路透表示,公司已经在海外投资很长一段时间,在中国“很久以前任何新规定”。看起来“创新型企业与人才管理团队”,让他们独立成长的空间,该公司补充道,但没有详细阐述。
腾讯的追求更大的游戏公司的股权等其他科技巨头微软、索尼和亚马逊正在抢购游戏资产和相关知识产权,说三个来源。
腾讯首席战略官詹姆斯·米切尔说,该公司8月在电话公布财报收益仍将活跃在海外获得新游戏工作室。
“在游戏业务方面,我们的策略是……特别是在重点发展我们的能力国际市场,”他说。“我们将继续是非常活跃的收购中国以外的新游戏工作室。”
追求更大的风险
腾讯越来越关注海外资产和市场截然不同的是,其在国内的交易速度慢得多自取缔的加剧,和一批国内投资组合公司的撤资。
从2015年到2020年,中国第一个通讯应用微信的主人在家150年投资总额750亿美元,比102年价值330亿美元的交易在海外市场,根据Refinitiv数据。
腾讯报道8月首次季度营收下降,部分受缺乏游戏批准在中国法规限制的上场时间。在线游戏收入国内外降低了1%。
其香港上市的股票缩水大约60%在过去的两年。
在这样的背景下,腾讯几乎没有今年在中国进行了投资和27个离岸交易价值30亿美元,Refinitiv数据显示。已减少其投资组合部分安抚监管者和还书一些巨额利润,消息人士告诉路透。
“我们相信腾讯将继续作出合理的投资获得质量的游戏内容和人才,深化与全球顶级工作室的伙伴关系,以加强其投资和在海外市场的存在,”花旗集团分析师在一份报告中说在9月初。
腾讯现有游戏的追求更大股权投资组合或新目标会给公司一个更大的说,这些公司的业务,也帮助它获得的知识产权受欢迎的游戏,四来源说。
与北京的同时,严格限制游戏批准在家里仍然暂停审批外交IPs游戏,腾讯被迫走向控制的外国游戏公司和他们的IPs,四来源说。
腾讯上调9月的股份育碧交易的中国公司的最大股东法国顶级游戏开发者,11%的股份,可以进一步增加到多达17%。
区域性轴心
育碧的交易后就财大气粗的腾讯6月收购丹麦Sybo游戏,打手机游戏的开发者地铁冲浪,和8月日本16.25%的股份开发者FromSoftware“艾尔登环”。
去年,腾讯表示,将接管英国游戏开发者相扑的13亿美元——一个在2020年末以来的最大外交事务监管镇压。
在欧洲,除了收购多数股权“宗族冲突”手机游戏制造商超晶胞为86亿美元2016年,腾讯多年来主要是减少少数交易包括收购9%的英国博彩公司前沿发展。
在其他地方,腾讯还寻求增加其投资和进一步进军东南亚认为该地区拥有6.5亿人口,是有可能复制中国的成功互联网繁荣时期,两位消息人士说。
中国最大的社交网络公司已经有一个在新加坡东南亚区域中心,其国际游戏出版业务。
自去年以来,该公司一再强调说,它的目标是有一半的博彩收入来自中国以外,从目前的约25%。在这一过程中,它在去年12月推出了一个新的出版品牌称为水平无限在新加坡。
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