According to some reports, Tencent Holdings Limited is going to raise billions of dollars to acquire a South Korean or US-based gaming studio. The rumors are suggesting that the Chinese gaming company could acquire Electronics Art or Take-Two Interactive. There is also another possibility that Tencent is planning to bring a GTA competitor on its own and raising the fund for its development.
Tencent already owns Riot Games and 40% of its stake in Epic Games. Besides these, it has decent investments in renowned studios such as Activision Blizzard, Bluehole, Ubisoft, and more.
The latest report comes via TMT Finance, which states that Tencent is “considering raising several billion dollars in a “club” loan deal and is holding talks with lending banks as the company looks at a potential acquisition of a gaming business” (via Seeking Alpha).
In the last week, Tencent has acquired a majority stake in Klei Entertainment, the Canadian studio that is the creator of the Don’t Starve. Still, it is not confirmed that if Tencent has any plan to acquire EA, Take-Two, or any other gaming studio. Some rumors are indicating that the fundraise is for a GTA competitor, that Tencent wants to develop.
Electronics Art and Take-Two Interactive have market capitalizations of US$43 billion and US$24 billion dollars respectively. Whereas, Tencent has US$854.35 billion dollars of market capitalization. Even if these targeted companies don’t want to be get acquired, Tencent can still pursue a hostile takeover avoiding the approval of the company’s board.
We will keep you updated if any further announcement or rumor comes out. Jez Corden from Windows Central suggests that in the coming years, many studios could be sold out.
