China internet giant Tencent has a gigantic investment portfolio, but has a rather hands-off approach when it comes to those investments. Tencent watcher Matthew Brennan explains at Technode how to look at that strategy.
Technode:
According to Matthew Brennan, founder of research consultancy China Channel and co-host of Technode’s China Tech Talk podcast, Tencent’s relatively hands-off approach can be attributed to the experience and personalities of two of the company’s top decision-makers: Executive Director and President Martin Lau, and Chief Strategy Officer James Mitchell. “Both Martin and James think more like investment bankers than operations-focused managers,” explains Brennan. “Much of Tencent’s profit generation still lies in gaming, a sector in which they are known to take more controlling and larger stakes. Yet for the rest of their investments, they seem comfortable trusting existing management and taking a much less active role.”
As of the end of Q2 2019, Tencent reported an investment portfolio amounting to over RMB 417 billion (about $59 billion), including China and overseas.
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