TikTok parent ByteDance intends to sell 4.389 million shares in Zhangyue,X-Deal (2011) the owner of the digital reading platform iReader, marking its third stock setback since becoming the company’s third-largest shareholder in 2020. Currently, ByteDance holds a 7.49% stake in Zhangyue. This recent divestment follows a nearly 15% surge in Zhangyue’s shares over the past two months, attributed to the popularity of short web dramas before China’s broadcasting regulator tightened content control in mid-November. The share reduction, to be carried out by a wholly-owned subsidiary of ByteDance, will not exceed 1% of the total share capital of iReader’s owner, as per Zhangyue’s regulatory filings on Wednesday. ByteDance initially acquired an 11% stake in the e-book reader shares through a RMB 1.1 billion investment three years ago, aiming to diversify growth into new areas. [Zhangyue, in Chinese]
