Tencent dominated the $22 billion spent in the games industry on investments and M&A activity during the last 12 months to Q1 2018, according to a new Digi-Capital report.

The Chinese publishing giant led or participated in over $4 of every $10 invested in games companies worldwide.

It was also a buyer or seller in more than three-quarters of all games M&A activity in terms of value.

Tencent’s most notable deals included its $632 million and $462m investments in games streaming service Douyu and Huya, as well as its $476 million investment in games developer Shanda Games.

The publishing giant also made additional investments in mobile games developers with $130 million and $72 million put into Kakao Games and Ourpalm respectively.

Record-breaking

Digi-Capital’s report found games investment in the last 12 months reached a record-breaking $4.2 billion-plus.

Most of the money went into games tech and platform companies rather than developers.

While mobile has typically also been a hotspot for investment deals, the last 12 months to Q1 2018 saw a large amount of money pumped into the MMO and MOBA spaces, with esports also generating a lot of funding.

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