TikTok parent ByteDance intends to sell 4.389 million shares in Zhangyue,erotice designed for women 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]
