Investing.com – Hong Kong-listed shares of Chinese tech giant Tencent Holdings Ltd (HK:0700) rose to an eight-month high of HK$367.7 on Wednesday morning in Asia on speculation that the company may soon close a high-profile deal.
The gaming titan is placing a bid for the holding company that controls South Korean gaming company Nexon. On Tuesday, Reuters reported that Tencent is among the five shortlisted bidders, together with South Korea’s biggest chat operator Kakao Corp and three private equity firms.
According to media reports, the bid could go up to as high as 15 trillion won ($13.3 billion).
Nexon was founded in 1994 and has developed more than 80 live games in over 190 countries. Acquiring the South Korean gaming company is expected to boost Tencent’s video gaming business.
The news sent Tencent’s share price higher to HK$367.7 by 11:39 PM ET (04:39 AM GMT).
Shares have recovered from a year low of HK$252.2 on Oct. 30, 2018.