Shen, 56, retired from that role owing to “other business commitments”, and there is no disagreement between him and the Beijing-based company’s board, according to Meituan’s filing to the Hong Kong stock exchange on June 14.
Known as China’s venture capital “godfather” for his investments in some of the country’s most successful internet companies, Shen earlier this month was ranked No 3 in Forbes’ 2024 Midas List of the world’s top 100 venture capitalists. The 23rd annual ranking primarily credited Shen for investing in social media powerhouse ByteDance, owner of hit short video platforms TikTok and Douyin.
Shen’s exit from Meituan’s board, which he joined in October 2015, marks his latest high-profile corporate departure, after leaving similar roles at Shanghai-listed BTG Hotels in April and budget online retailer Pinduoduo in November 2022.
Meituan and HongShan did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Monday.
HongShan had been gradually cutting its stake in Meituan since China’s top food delivery services provider debuted in Hong Kong on September 20, 2018. The venture capital firm has cashed out more than HK$50 billion since 2018, and currently holds a 1.7 per cent stake in Meituan.
Shen still owns 0.17 per cent of Meituan in beneficial interest, according to the Chinese internet firm’s 2023 annual results published earlier this month.
Apart from Meituan, Sequoia China has backed some of China’s largest technology firms, including Alibaba Group Holding, JD.com and Shein. Alibaba owns the South China Morning Post.
Meituan earlier this month reported a higher-than-expected 25 per cent year-on-year increase in revenue in the first quarter, citing gains from its core local commerce operations driven by food delivery.
Meituan is now moving to expand its footprint in international markets, according to co-founder and chief executive Wang Xing, who said in the firm’s earnings call earlier this month that the company has been exploring opportunities in Southeast Asia.
Denial of responsibility! Pioneer Newz is an automatic aggregator of the all world’s media. In each content, the hyperlink to the primary source is specified. All trademarks belong to their rightful owners, all materials to their authors. If you are the owner of the content and do not want us to publish your materials, please contact us by email – [email protected]. The content will be deleted within 24 hours.
