Pricey Purchase Plan for Popular WeChat Account Draws Regulator Scrutiny

ABOUT US

CX Tech is Caixin Global's real-time tech news portal, featuring 24-hour news, short-form analysis, and roundups from business and tech media in China.

TRENDING: In Depth: What’s in the China-U.S. Tariff Truce, and What’s Left Unsettled

LATEST: Spain Pushes for TikTok Suspension Over Child Abuse Content; Alibaba Files to Spin Off Chip Unit in Hong Kong; Chinese Venture Plans Orbital Computing Network; In Depth: CEO’s Affair Pulls Nvidia Deeper Into the U.S.-China Chip Fight; Zeiss Deepens China Push With Locally Developed Eye Care Products; Who Is Alice Huang, the Former Megaspeed Executive Linked to Nvidia’s CEO?; EU Finds Violation in TikTok Recommendation System; Chinese Lidar-Maker Hesai Eyes Growth Overseas, Where Adoption Lags; China’s Short Drama Boom Puts TV Show Creators on the Defensive; Nexperia’s Dutch Entity Seeks $2 Billion From Wingtech; Taiwan Weighs Tighter Controls on Chip Exports to Chinese Mainland; Tencent Launches Upgraded Hy4 AI Model With Visual Understanding; Meituan Unveils New AI Model Trained on Homegrown Chips; Cover Story: The Global Tech Sell-Off Tests the Economics Behind AI Boom; FCC Votes to Ban Chinese Labs From Testing Electronics for U.S. Market; China Optical Module Stocks Slump Despite Surging Earnings; Tencent Expands Enterprise AI Push With Integrated Workspace; Insta360 Profit Falls 94% Despite Strong Sales Growth; Apple’s Debut Foldable Suffers Hardware and Software Glitches; Unitree Robotics Surges as AI Models Promise to Unlock Robot Potential

By Shi Rui and Han Wei / Apr 02, 2019 02:31 AM / Business & Tech

Photo: VCG

The Shenzhen Stock Exchange demanded that an online education company disclose more about its eye-popping plan to pay 1.5 billion yuan ($223 million) to acquire a popular WeChat account.

The regulator listed 29 questions on the business operation of the target asset and the buyer’s financing plan and financial facts, requiring a reply by April 5.

Shenzhen-listed Qtone Education Group raised market eyebrows in late March with a plan to make a share-for-share acquisition of “Wu Xiaobo Channel,” a WeChat account focusing on business analysis and opinion articles managed by Hangzhou Bajiuling Culture and Innovation — which is controlled by finance journalist Wu Xiaobo and his wife Shao Bingbing.

The inquiry reflects regulators’ caution over mergers and acquisitions of assets in new-media formats.

The Wu Xiaobo Channel has more than 2 million followers and was valued at 2 billion yuan in a financing round in 2017. The account makes money from several WeChat-related routes: advertising, subscriptions, and even online finance courses.

Share this article

Open WeChat and scan the QR code