A CONSORTIUM led by Chinese Internet major Sina Corp. is in advanced talks to acquire at least 18 percent of Yoozoo Games, two people with direct knowledge of the matter said.

Sina is teaming up with China’s Twitter-like Weibo Corp. and one Shanghai-based State investment firm, said the people.

The consortium is in final talks with Yoozoo chairwoman Xu Fenfen to buy at least 18 percent of the company first, said the people. An 18 percent stake in Yoozoo is worth about 2.86 billion yuan (US$447 million) based on the Shenzhen-listed company’s market value of US$2.5 billion Friday.

Yoozoo, the developer of the popular “Game of Thrones: Winter Is Coming” game, declined to comment. Sina, which one source said would set up a special purpose vehicle for the deal, and Weibo did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

In a stock exchange filing last week, Yoozoo said Xu was mulling equity transfer-related issues and had made relatively substantial progress.

The deal talks come as Sina, which is a small player in the US$44 billion Chinese gaming market, is looking to accelerate its growth in the gaming industry, which received a boost last year after the COVID-19 pandemic forced many residents to stay at home, driving up game downloads.

Reuters reported in April that Bilibili was in talks to buy a 24 percent stake in Yoozoo Games as part of a nearly 5 billion yuan deal. But the online video site dropped the deal as it was not moving as fast as Sina, said one of the sources. Bilibili declined to comment.

The deal also comes in the backdrop of growing challenges for Xu, said the sources. Xu took the helm of the Shanghai-based video game company after its founder and chairman Lin Qi died under suspicious circumstances in December.

Xu has also become the legal guardian of the inheritors of Lin, who was also Yoozoo’s actual controller with a 24 percent stake, since his death, according to the company’s filings. The consortium is also looking to buy the remainder of the 24 percent stake in the coming months, said the people.

The consortium is seeking to finalize the deal in the coming weeks, the sources said.

In addition to the stake purchase, the consortium has also stepped in to help solve the debt problem that Lin left, said the two people. (SD-Agencies)