Asian Tech Press (May 12) -- Tencent has abandoned its acquisition of gaming phone company Black Shark due to lack of approval from Chinese regulators.

News about the acquisition circulated in January this year, but Chinese gaming and social media company Tencent has abandoned the acquisition because it has not yet been approved by the relevant authorities in China.

Earlier, Black Shark takeover was seen a key step for Tencent in its foray into the metaverse industry. Black Shark's future business focus will shift from gaming phones to the VR devices, where Tencent will provide the content and it will provide the VR hardware portal.

It appears that the deal has now been terminated.

Luo Yuzhou, co-founder and CEO of Black Shark, said that there are still financing and acquisition-related plans for Black Shark, and the company is looking for opportunities.

Founded in August 2017, Black Shark is a hardware manufacturer with a focus on gaming phones.