Tencent Stock: Back on Paramount-Warner Bros. Deal as Passive Investor

TLDR

• Tencent (TCEHY) is reportedly back as an investor in Paramount Skydance’s $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD)
• Tencent intends to invest several hundred million dollars, acting as a passive financial investor
• A previous $1 billion equity commitment from Tencent was withdrawn over US national security concerns
• Tencent already holds a minority non-voting stake in Paramount Skydance
• S&P Global placed all of Paramount Skydance’s (PSKY) credit ratings on CreditWatch with negative implications last week

Tencent is reportedly circling back to one of the biggest media deals in history — this time with a smaller, quieter role.

According to Bloomberg, Tencent Holdings intends to invest several hundred million dollars into Paramount Skydance’s acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery. The Chinese tech giant would act as a passive financial investor, sources said.

This marks a return to a deal that Tencent was previously shut out of. Back in December, Paramount’s original offer for Warner Bros. included a $1 billion equity commitment from Tencent. That was pulled after Warner Bros. raised concerns that Tencent’s involvement could trigger national security scrutiny from US regulators.

After Paramount revised and raised its offer, Warner Bros. agreed to the sale. The deal, led by David Ellison, is valued at $110 billion.

Sources told Bloomberg the investment is not confirmed. Tencent may still decide to pass, and the deal itself could take time to close. Representatives for both Tencent and Paramount declined to comment.

Chinese investment in US media has been a sensitive area in Washington. The scrutiny around TikTok’s US operations this year underlined that tension. More recently, Supercell — a Finnish gaming company owned by Tencent — said it is cooperating with a US security probe into Tencent’s data practices.

Tencent’s Existing Ties

Tencent is not new to the Paramount-Skydance orbit. It already holds a minority non-voting stake in Paramount. It also co-financed films produced by Skydance and has helped with marketing and distribution of the studio’s major releases since a strategic investment in Skydance Media back in 2018.

The broader deal structure is backed by $47 billion in equity from the Ellison family and RedBird Capital Partners, plus $54 billion in debt commitments from Bank of America, Citigroup, and Apollo Global Management.

Existing Paramount stockholders may also be able to participate in a rights offering of up to $3.25 billion in Class B stock alongside new equity.

Credit Watch

There’s a cloud hanging over PSKY on the ratings front. S&P Global Ratings placed all of Paramount Skydance’s corporate credit ratings on CreditWatch with negative implications last week.

That signals elevated downgrade risk in the near term. The current official corporate credit rating stands at BB+.

Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc., WBD

Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) closed down 0.18% on Monday. PSKY rose 2.13%. Tencent’s Hong Kong-listed stock (0700.HK) fell 0.58%.

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