REX Global Entertainment Holdings Ltd., a Hong Kong-based investment company, has purchased 64.9 percent shares from Russian smartphone maker Yota Devices following the signing of the deal on Thursday, Oct. 22, the China Daily reported.
"Yota Devices has been looking for investors for over a year. REX Global has been actively looking for an opportunity to enter the smartphone market. Yota provides the Hong Kong firm with the opportunity to do just that," Vladislav Martynov, CEO of Yota Devices, said.
Under the terms of the agreement, REX Global will invest $50 million in Yota, which will be used to provide capital for the product line and develop the next generation of Yota Phone, the report said.
A statement released to the press by Yota said that the deal will help the Russian company expand into China and Southeast Asia markets.
REX Global said that it bought the shares from Telconet Capital Limited Partnership, while the remaining shares will be owned by the Russian state corporation Rostec (25.1 percent) and Yota management (10 percent).
In November last year, Russian president Vladimir Putin presented President Xi Jinping with the Russian-designed, Chinese-manufactured YotaPhone2 as a symbol of cooperation in the field of consumer electronics between Russia and China.
On Sept. 15, Yota signed cooperation agreements with Shenzhen ZTE Supply Chain Co. Ltd. (ZTESC), an associate company of ZTE Corporation, and Shenzhen X&F Technology Co. Ltd., a company that specializes in terminal products in the field of communications.
"The next generation of Yota Phone will come with a high-end performance and a reasonable price," Martynov said. He told China Daily that a larger screen and better camera features and some of the functions will be improved in the next generation.
Martynov claimed that the price of the existing YotaPhone 2 will be slightly cheaper at 4,888 yuan ($799).
REX Global Entertainment Holdings Ltd. is an investment holding company listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.