Tencent is reportedly considering increasing its stake in Assassin’s Creed publisher Ubisoft as it looks to expand its global footprint.
The Chinese company acquired a 5 percent stake in Ubisoft in 2018, but according to Reuters has now contacted the French publisher with a view to upping its stake.
Sources with direct knowledge of the matter said Tencent intends to become the single largest shareholder in Ubisoft with the planned purchase. It will reportedly offer to buy part of its additional stake from Ubisoft’s founding Guillemot family, which currently owns 15 percent of the company.
Two of the sources who spoke with Retuers said Tencent might offer up to €100 per share to facilitate the purchase, marking an increase on the €66 per share it paid to grab 5 percent of the company in 2018.
It has also been claimed that Tencent will look to acquire shares from public shareholders to further increase its chances of becoming Ubisoft’s largest shareholder.
Both Tencent and Ubisoft declined to comment when approached by Reuters.
Tencent has been making significant inroads into the global video game market in recent months as regulations in China continue to tighten, resulting in playtime and spending restrictions being imposed on players.
Earlier this week, the company partnered with Logitech to create a new cloud gaming handheld that is slated to launch later this year. It has also sunk cash into a huge number of studios including RiffRaff Games, Tequila Works, Inflexion Games, Playtonic, and 1C Entertainment.
Notably, Ubisoft has previously indicated that it wouldn’t be totally averse to being bought-out. At the start of the year, Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot said that any acquisition offer “would be reviewed” by company leadership, but noted the publisher would look to “remain independent” as part of any deal.
