Chinese antitrust regulator could veto Baidu Inc's (NASDAQ:BIDU) ambitious $3.6-billion acquisition of JOYY Inc's (NASDAQ:YY) live streaming business YY Live.
The approval amid Beijing's crackdown on gaming-related businesses and corporate expansion via deals could send a wrong signal to the market as per a source. The approval process will likely keep dragging on until the application lapses.
Baidu had not received any negative update from Chinese regulators regarding the deal. In early September, the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) informed about conducting anti-monopoly reviews of 11 transactions, including Baidu's acquisition of YY Live.
JOYY's top two shareholders, Chairman David Li and Xiaomi Corp founder Lei Jun, aimed to take JOYY private as the U.S. market undervalued the firm.
Earlier this month, JOYY authorized a new share repurchase plan under which the Company may repurchase up to $200 million U.S. of its shares over the next 12 months. The share repurchases may be made from time to time in the open market at prevailing market prices, in privately negotiated transactions, in block trades and/or through other legally permissible means, depending on market conditions and in accordance with applicable rules and regulations.
JOYY’s board of directors will review the share repurchase plan periodically, and may authorize adjustment of its terms and size. The Company expects to fund repurchases made under this plan from its existing funds.
YY shares traded lower by $4.63, or 8.9% at $47.60 to begin the session Friday, while BIDU shares flopped $3.06, or 1.9%, to $157.44
