Industry

Zhihu: Withdrawal of Shareholders a Normal Change in Corporate Governance

Dec 23, 2021, 18:47pm2021/12/23 18:48:00 Pandaily

Chinese business inquiry platform Tianyancha showed on Thursday that Beijing Zhizhe Tianxia Technology Co., Ltd., an affiliated company of Zhihu<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder />, the largest Q&A-inspired online community in China, has undergone changes to its registration with the country’s Industrial and Commercial Administration recently.

Several companies and individuals have withdrawn as shareholders, including Sogou, Tencent<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder />-affiliated company Shenzhen Litong Industrial Investment Fund Co., Ltd., Bai Jie, and Huang Jixin.

In response, Zhihu<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder /> pointed out that Beijing Zhizhe Tianxia Technology is an affiliated company of Zhihu<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder /> Inc., its overseas-listed entity. This structural change is a normal change in the firm’s corporate governance, and the actual controllers, key shareholders and their shareholding ratios in Zhihu<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder /> remain unchanged.

Beijing Zhizhe Tianxia Technology was established in June 2011 with a registered capital of about 1,691,900 yuan ($265,612) and its legal representative is Li Dahai. According to shareholder information, the company is now jointly held by Zhou Yuan and Li Dahai.

On March 27 this year, Zhihu<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder /> was officially listed on the New York Stock Exchange. According to information disclosed when it was listed, Zhou Yuan, founder, Chairman and CEO of Zhihu<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder />, held 8.2% of the total shares, and management held 9.6%. Among the institutional shareholders, Sinovation Ventures held 13.1%, Tencent<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder /> held 12.3%, Qiming Venture Partners held 11.3%, SAIF Partners held 9.3%, Kuaishou held 8.3%, and CTG of Capital Today held 6.8%.

SEE ALSO: Chinese Q&A Site Zhihu Summoned by Beijing Cyberspace Regulator

Apart from the withdrawing of shareholders of Zhihu<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder />-affiliated companies, Tencent<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder /> also announced on December 23 that it would hand out JD.com<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder /> stocks to shareholders.

After the distribution, Tencent<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder />‘s shareholding ratio in JD.com<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder /> will be reduced from 17% to about 2.3%, and it will no longer be the largest shareholder in JD.com<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder />.

Tencent<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder /> then explained that JD.com<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder /> has been able to raise funds independently, and the transfer is in line with Tencent<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder />‘s investment strategy. Tencent<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder /> and JD.com<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder /> will still maintain a strong partnership in the future.