Newsbrief: Chinese tech conglomerate and prolific video game studio investor Tencent may soon be under pressure to divest its holdings in video game companies based in the United States. That pressure would be coming from none other than the United States government.
A new report in the Financial Times (spotted by Reuters) indicates that officials at the White House is internally debating whether or not to “allow” Tencent to keep its stakes in major video game companies in the United States. This comes in advance of a planned meeting between American president Donald Trump and Chinese president Xi Jinping.
Such an action would impact Tencent’s investment in League of Legends and Valorant developer Riot Games, as well as Fortnite developer Epic Games, which also produces Unreal Engine.
It’s unclear what legal action the administration could apply to force Tencent to take such major financial action.
This is a developing story. Game Developer has reached out to Tencent for comment.