Japan's SoftBank Corp has reached an agreement with China's internet giant Oak Interactive Group (OPI) to become its largest shareholder and bring it under its umbrella. SoftBank will spend about 10 billion yen (approximately RMB 675 million) to purchase approximately 14% of OPI's shares. Including a private placement, SoftBank's total investment will reach around 40 billion yen, giving it a 40% stake in OPI. The largest Chinese student social networking site, Xiaonei.com, is a subsidiary of Oak Interactive Group.
According to Kyodo News, Masayoshi Son, president of SoftBank, will serve as a director of OPI, directly participating in the management decisions.
SoftBank has already invested in Alibaba Group, the leading enterprise in the business-to-business e-commerce sector in China. SoftBank's goal is to gain more profits from the rapidly growing and largest-scale Chinese internet market.
OPI's main customer base in China consists of students, providing them with "social networking services" to exchange information with friends online. It is the largest SNS service provider for students in China.