Tencent-Backed 58.com Acquires Chinese Real Estate Listing Site
Acquisition creates China’s largest secondary and rental real estate platform
58.com Inc., the Chinese equivalent of Craigslist Inc. backed by Internet giant Tencent Holdings Ltd. , said Monday it had acquired an online real estate listing site for about $267 million, the latest deal in China’s fast-growing market for services that connect online users with traditional local offline businesses.
Beijing-based 58.com, which provides users with local information such as job postings and rentals, said that it had bought a 100% stake in Shanghai-based Anjuke, whose website and app allow users to search for real estate properties.
As 58.com’s current services already include real estate listings, the acquisition creates China’s largest secondary and rental real estate platform, 58.com Chief Executive Michael Jinbo Yao said in a statement.
Tencent, whose main businesses are social networks and online games, bought a roughly 20% stake in 58.com in June last year and integrated its services into its WeChat and QQ messaging services. Last year, Tencent also bought a 15% stake in a Chinese online real estate services company called Leju Holdings Ltd.
Source: http://www.wsj.com/articles/tencent-backed-58-com-acquires-chinese-real-estate-listing-site-1425274248
