Vivendi completes sale of Universal Music Group minority stake to Tencent and partners

After a lengthy process that seemed at many points like it would come to naught, Vivendi has officially sold a stake in Universal Music Group to a consortium led by Tencent. The completed deal is for a 10% stake in the major label, with the option to acquire another 10% at the same valuation. The deal sets UMG’s value at €30 billion. The parties signed their agreement for this transaction on December 31, 2019.

Chinese conglomerate Tencent is the leader of the group. Tencent Music Entertainment and other financial co-investors, not named by Vivendi, make up the rest of the consortium.

The agreement has a separate terms that will allow Tencent Music Entertainment to acquire a minority share capital of the UMG subsidiary running its operations in China.

Vivendi said it will continue to look into the potential of selling additional minority interests in the label. It is still looking to launch an IPO for Universal in the coming years. “Vivendi intends to use the proceeds from these different transactions for substantial share buyback operations and acquisitions,” the company said.

Anna Washenko