Tencent Holdings has reportedly increased its stake in FromSoftware parent company Kadokawa. The Chinese company is said to have acquired an additional 1.11% stake in Kadokawa Corporation on Monday, raising its stake in the company from 6.86% to 7.97%. Tencent acquired a stake in the Japanese company in 2021 for 30 billion yen (approximately Rs. 1,757 crore). Recently, Kadokawa has been in talks with Sony about being acquired, but the PlayStation parent company instead increased its stake in the company and became its largest shareholder at the end of 2024.
Tencent increases stake in Kadokawa
Tencent subsidiary SixJoy Hong Kong Limited announced the share acquisition in a large shareholding report submitted to the Kanto Finance Bureau on Monday, Nikkei reported. The company acquired Kadokawa’s new shares “as part of a capital and business alliance between the submitter and the issuer,” the report said.
In 2021, Tencent invested 30 billion yen in Kadokawa and acquired 6.86% of Kadokawa’s shares. After Tencent took a stake, it became the company’s third largest shareholder.
In December, Sony increased its stake in Kadokawa from 2% to nearly 10%, becoming FromSoftware’s parent company’s largest shareholder. The Japanese company invested 50 billion yen ($320 million, approximately Rs. 2,722 crore) to acquire new shares in Kadokawa to strengthen cooperation with the publishing company and maximize the value of the intellectual property rights of both companies globally. Korean company Kakao Investment is Kadokawa’s second largest shareholder, holding 8.44% of the shares.
Kadokawa is the parent company of FromSoftware, a well-known game developer, which has developed popular games such as the “Dark Souls” series, “Bloodborne”, “Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice” and “Elden Ring”.
It is also worth noting that SixJoy Hong Kong Limited, owned by Sony and Tencent, also holds shares in FromSoftware. In 2022, Sony Interactive Entertainment and Tencent acquired a combined 30.34% stake in the studio, of which Sony acquired 14.09%. However, Kadokawa remains the largest shareholder, owning 69.66% of the game maker.
