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Bloomberg
Tencent Holdings Ltd. is leading the acquisition of 14 percent of billionaire Wang Jianlin’s Wanda Commercial Properties Co. for $5.4 billion, a deal that will begin the target company’s retreat from real estate development.
Online mall JD.com Inc., Sunac China Holdings Ltd. and Suning Commerce Group Co.—a retailer backed by e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.— will also take part in the acquisition of shares owned by private investors who backed Wanda’s delisting plan in 2016, the Chinese company said on its website.
The investment in China’s largest mall operator marks Tencent’s latest foray into old-school retail. Like arch-foe Alibaba, the gaming giant and WeChat operator is trying to ramp up adoption of its digital wallet and mobile payments service, a conduit for valuable consumer data as well as a way to drive user growth across all linked services. China’s largest tech companies are betting they can use technology to overhaul a $4 trillion domestic brick-and-mortar retail industry to drive their next phase of growth.
After the transaction, Wanda Commercial will be renamed Wanda Commercial Management Group and focus on the management of commercial properties, it said. It was delisted from the Hong Kong stock exchange in 2016 in a $4.4 billion privatisation.