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Tencent in talks to purchase Leyou, parent company of Warframe dev

Leyou Technologies has a number of gaming subsidiaries, including Digital Extremes, Splash Damage, and more.

Brittany Vincent

July 10, 2020 8:15 AM

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According to recent reports, Chinese conglomerate Tencent is looking to acquire Hong Kong-based Leyou Technologies. While Leyou has several subsidiaries that help to create new video games, it's notable for developer Digital Extremes' Warframe.

Leyou and controlling shareholder Charles Yuk are allegedly now part of an exclusivity agreement with Tencent subsidiary Tencent Mobility Limited. The goal is to apparently purchase Leyou and make it private, though the exclusivity agreement precludes Leyou and Yuk from entering negotiations with other buyers over the next three months.

Sources indicate that the negotiations are still currently ongoing and may not ultimately culminate into a deal. Share trading has been halted in anticipation of an official takeover.

This happening shouldn't come as a surprise, as Tencent has worked to acquire several firms over the years, including Epic Games and Supercell. Having Leyou under its belt would help to bolster it against competition from its rival company NetEase, which just raised $2.7 billion just last month alone.

Of course, none of these acquisition talks have been finalized just yet, so we're still waiting on any sort of official word from Tencent or Leyou. As with many other things that remain uncertain in 2020, we'll have to wait and see what happens. Stay tuned to Shacknews for additional updates. 

Brittany Vincent

Senior Editor

Fueled by horror, rainbow-sugar-pixel-rushes, and video games, Brittany is a Senior Editor at Shacknews who thrives on surrealism and ultraviolence. Follow her on Twitter @MolotovCupcake and check out her portfolio for more. Like a fabulous shooter once said, get psyched!