Tencent this week stepped up its overseas push with the acquisition of two European gaming companies and the opening of a studio in Canada by its TiMi Studio Group.

On 19 July the Chinese web giant upped a minority stake held in Sweden-based Stunlock Studios since 2019 to a majority holding for an undisclosed sum. The same day, Tencent agreed to acquire UK-headquartered Sumo Digital for £919 million.

Michelle Liu, CEO of Tencent Games Global, explained in a statement it was impressed by Stunlock Studio’s performance and would “continue to look to partner with the most-talented development teams in the world to bring the best-quality games to the industry”.

Also on 19 July, TiMi Studio Group detailed plans to open a facility in Montreal to create and develop original IP. The site adds to existing North American development facilities in Los Angeles and Seattle.

Data from Investgame.net showed Tencent closed 50 M&A deals in H1, eight of which were in Europe.

Earlier this month, the company called off a merger of gaming platforms Huya and DouYu in China.