Trump’s WeChat ban shaves 10% off Naspers pillar Tencent – Wall Street Journal

South African media company Naspers bought 46.5% of Tencent for just $32m in 2001. The Tencent share price has soared since then, playing into the value of Naspers. Tencent is now held by Naspers-controlled Prosus, which became Europe's biggest listed consumer internet firm when it floated on the Amsterdam stock exchange last year. Tencent stock plunged after Trump banned the use of its popular social media app, WeChat, in the US. In 2019, Tencent ranked as the world's biggest games publisher by revenue. Though Trump's order is vague about the extent of the ban, it could prevent any US companies from interacting with Tencent. According to Bloomberg, this would not only freeze billions of dollars of commerce, but it could completely shut down communication between the US and China. A similar ban looms for ByteDance Ltd.'s TikTok. Bloomberg notes that Trump's move to ban TikTok and WeChat beginning 45 days from now has sent shockwaves through the tech industry and the many US businesses that rely on the apps to sell goods in China. – Claire Badenhorst 

Tencent stock drops after firm is targeted by Trump executive order

By Chong Koh Ping and Xie Yu

Shares of Tencent Holdings Ltd. plunged as much as 10% on Friday, hours after President Trump signed an executive order that would bar US entities from transacting with the Chinese internet giant and its popular social media app, WeChat.

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