ByteDance was China biggest tech deal maker in 2020 as education, health care boost overall value of tech investments
- Out of 604 acquisitions in China’s new economy sector, ByteDance led with nine deals in fields ranging from entertainment to health care
- The next three most active tech deal makers were Tencent Holdings, JD.com and Alibaba Group Holding, with eight, six and five acquisitions respectively
Beijing-based ByteDance, best known for its short video app TikTok, was the biggest deal maker among China’s tech giants in 2020, expanding out of its core area of entertainment and advertising, according to a new report.
Out of 604 acquisitions in China’s new economy sector last year, ByteDance bought nine companies in fields ranging from entertainment and advertising to education and health care, according to a report released on Thursday by Chinese start-up database ITJuzi.
This comes as investment activity in China’s technology and internet sector cooled down in 2020, continuing the slowdown that began in 2019. However, the total value of tech-related investments increased as demand for online education and health care services was boosted by the coronavirus pandemic.
“Funding for most industries went down, but health care and education doubled in 2020, which helped lift the whole funding amount for the past year,” the report said.
However, even these types of investments could see a slowdown this year, according to analysts, as Beijing further scrutinises Big Tech’s market behaviour as part of ongoing efforts to crack down on “disorderly expansion of capital.”
“Chinese internet titans are going to face tougher scrutiny from SAMR [the State Administration for Market Regulation[, the anti-monopoly regulator, especially in fintech and media sectors,” said Ling Yang, deputy editor of Mergermarket in China. “The investments and acquisitions made by internet giants are facing more regulatory tightening as the government seeks to encourage competition from smaller players.”
