After a chastening crackdown that wiped billions off their value and forced top executives out of the public eye, China’s technology giants are back in favour and on the front foot, making deals and snapping up assets. At the top of the pile are Alibaba Group and Tencent , two huge players that used to compete for acquisitions until their wings were clipped by Chinese authorities concerned about their wide and powerful reach. Nowadays, with China’s economy struggling to pick up much growth momentum and tensions with the US and others rumbling on, the govt’s stance has shifted, especially with regard to key areas such as AI and tech more broadly. Tencent’s music platform agreed to buy podcasting startup Ximalaya this month, a step forward in its bid to be China’s Spotify. That followed a Tencent subsidiary snapping up a nearly 10% stake in SM Entertainment, a rare Chinese investment into a South Korean company in recent years.In April, Ant Group — of Alibaba pioneer Jack Ma, who disappeared from view in 2020 after criticising regulators – became controlling shareholder of Bright Smart Securities. “Chinese tech firms have been actively looking at acquisition opportunities both domestically and abroad, seeking new growth areas,” said Ho-Yin Lee, head of Citigroup investment banking group.
