Tencent Cites National Security Concerns in Withdrawing from Warner Bros. Bid

Paramount Skydance revealed that Tencent Holdings withdrew its bid to buy Warner Bros Discovery to avoid probable national security scrutiny. The Chinese company pulled its $1 billion financing amid fears of a potential review by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) owing to its non-U.S. equity financing source status. Tencent’s exit followed Paramount’s $77.9 billion hostile takeover bid for Warner Bros. Discovery, intensifying rivalry with Netflix. Notably, this bid doesn’t hinge on a CFIUS or FCC approval. Paramount’s filing highlighted major players: sovereign wealth funds of Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi, and Qatar, collectively providing $24 billion,…