Summary
A coalition ofUbisoftshareholders has demanded that the company vote on renegotiating its recent deal with Tencent. Tencent has held a growing stake in the company behindAssassin’s CreedandFar Cryfor years now, and its involvement in how the business runs has ramped up amid recent economic troubles. While the deal originally looked promising for the future ofUbisoft, shareholders are questioning how much it’ll actually benefit the company.
In late March 2025,Ubisoft announced a new Tencent-backed subsidiarythat would take over theAssassin’s Creed,Far Cry, andRainbow Sixfranchises. While the subsidiary would still be under the Ubisoft umbrella, it would put these titles under new leadership, and Tencent would control 25% of its stake, far more than the 10% it currently owns in Ubisoft as a whole. Now that markets have had a chance to react, a group of investors is calling for a renegotiation.
In anopen letter acquired by Insider Gaming, minority shareholder AJ Investments and a group of other investors announced it has reached out to French courts to compel Ubisoft to hold a vote over two resolutions regarding the recent Tencent deal. The first is to restructure it as a direct asset sale for at least €4 billion, which is roughly the deal’s original value, which would clarify the terms and offer more insight into how it would benefit shareholders. Ubisoft and Tencent had alreadyannounced plans to split the companyearlier this year, but investors apparently had little clarity on how doing so would be a net positive.
Ubisoft Shareholders Demand a Vote on the New Tencent-Backed Subsidiary
The second resolution would require Ubisoft to distribute €3 billion from the Tencent sale directly among the shareholders at a rate of €23 per share. Another €1 billion would go toward covering the company’s corporate net debt. These terms would ensure that investors get an immediate payback from the deal and offer some financial protection for Ubisoft going forward. While recent trends have shown some positive signs for the company, withAssassin’s Creed Shadowsbecoming one of the best-selling games of 2025so far, paying down debt and trying to avoid future financial troubles is likely still important to shareholders given poor overall performance in recent years.
Interestingly, the letter also mentions limiting the voting power of the Guillemot family, who founded the company. During the initial talks with Tencent,shareholders wanted the Guillemots to retain control over Ubisoft, so this represents a slight change of position among investors. How the vote will proceed is unclear, but there may be some changes on the horizon for Ubisoft and its shareholders.
