TVB chairman acquires shares in ultimate parent company

Local broadcaster TVB’s executive chairman Thomas Hui (pictured) has acquired shares in its ultimate parent company, Young Lion Holdings (YLH), from non-executive director Kenneth Hsu.

According to filings submitted to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX), YLH is an indirect holding company of Shaw Brothers, which owned 116,817,527 shares of the company as of 9 May 2025, representing 25.02%.

Hui and Hsu have entered into a sale and purchase agreement, pursuant to which Hsu has agreed to transfer his shareholding interests in YLH to Hui. 

Following the completion of the transaction on 9 May 2025 and its approval by the Communications Authority (CA), Hsu no longer has any interest in the shares of YLH and TVB. Additionally, he has resigned as a non-executive director of the company, effective the same date, due to health issues and retirement plans.

In response, Hui stated to local media outlets such as Ming Pao and HKET that he acquired shares of YLH from Hsu through this transaction, indirectly obtaining equity in TVB and becoming an important shareholder. This strategic move reflects his strong confidence in TVB's ongoing growth and long-term value enhancement, he added. 

Meanwhile, the CA said in a release that YLH indirectly holds 25.02% of the voting shares of TVB through its wholly owned subsidiaries, transferring from its existing shareholder to Vanilla Sky, a company controlled by Hui.

“The changes in the shareholding structure of TVB have taken effect following the completion of the relevant transactions today (9 May 2025). Upon the completion of the transactions, YLH remains the major shareholder of TVB, with Hui becoming the ultimate voting controller of 25.02% of TVB's voting shares held by YLH,” the release reads. 

In approving the application, the CA is satisfied that after completion of the shareholding changes, TVB will continue to comply with all applicable regulatory requirements under the Broadcasting Ordinance (Cap. 562) and its free TV licence, and be able to honour the investment and programming commitments it has made under its licence.

MARKETING-INTERACTIVE has reached out to TVB for more information. 

Don’t miss: TVB narrows loss by 36% thanks to growth in ad sales

Back in March, TVB announced that it reduced its net loss by 36% from the previous year to HK$491 million, driven by a 21% surge in advertising income.

According to the official announcement on HKEX, TVB’s Hong Kong TV broadcasting segment achieved 17% revenue growth, with income from advertisers increasing by 14% as it continued to win back large corporate advertisers to its TV platforms.

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