(Yicai Global) Dec. 26 -- Weibo Corp. is acquiring a sister company which owns the Beijing office block where Weibo is based for CNY1.5 billion (USD215 million), and is not buying out its parent company online media giant Sina Corp., the Chinese Twitter-like microblogging giant said yesterday.

Unit Weibo Hong Kong is purchasing all the shares in Sina Technology China, which owns Sina Plaza in Beijing, and which belongs to Sina Hong Kong, also a subsidiary of Sina, Weibo said in a filing to the Hong Kong bourse on Dec. 23, citing the deal the two parties reached that day.

However, many misinterpreted the filing as referring to taking over its parent firm Sina.

Sina, which was founded in 2001, runs many units and businesses, said Weibo, which operates social media platform Sina Weibo with almost 600 million users. There will be no change in management relations between Weibo and Sina, the Beijing-based firm added.

Sina went private in March last year, delisting from the Nasdaq to fall under the joint control of Chairman Charles Chao and management. In September 2020, investment holding firm New Wave Holdings, which was later renamed Sina Group Holding, paid cash for all of Sina’s outstanding shares that the media giant did not already own.

Weibo’s net profit slumped 42.8 percent in the third quarter from the same period last year to USD120 million while revenue plunged 25 percent to USD450 million, according to the company’s third-quarter results published last month.

Weibo's share price [HKG:9898] closed down 0.14 percent at HKD144.40 (USD18.50) on the last trading day on Dec. 23. Today is a public holiday in Hong Kong.

Editor: Kim Taylor